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Infrastructure Bank Celebrates United for Infrastructure Week

Last month we proudly participated in United for Infrastructure Week (May 16-20), an annual national event to focus attention on the need to invest in our state and nation's critical infrastructure.

We kicked off Infrastructure Week with a visit to Save The Bay's Bay Center in Providence. It was a spectacular day overlooking Narragansett Bay and we were joined by Governor Dan McKee, and U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse to highlight the approximately $500 million for clean and drinking water projects Rhode Island is set to receive from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. This includes over $300 million for clean and drinking water infrastructure broadly, $141 million to replace lead drinking water service lines, and $41 million to address emerging contaminants such as PFAS and other "forever chemicals."
Next up, we visited the Lawrence Sunset Cove Association in Tiverton. Thanks to a $576,000 Drinking Water State Revolving Fund loan with 100% principal forgiveness, the Association was able to upgrade their drinking water system serving 21 residential homes.
We closed out Infrastructure Week with visits to two infrastructure projects financed through the Bank's energy efficiency and renewable energy programs. With $3.2 million in energy efficiency financing through our C-PACE program (and funded by the PACE Loan Group), the Eddy Street Self Storage facility, now under construction in Providence, will utilize 26% less energy than a baseline code compliant facility and will save nearly $50,000 per year in energy costs.
Finally, we toured wind turbines in Coventry. Two of the turbines, which supply power to the Town of West Warwick, were financed via loans from our Efficient Buildings Fund program.
We had a great time touring projects across Rhode Island for Infrastructure Week. From clean and drinking water, to renewable energy and energy efficiency, to roads and bridges, we're proud to assist our municipal and quasi-public partners in meeting their infrastructure needs.
Program Spotlight: Efficient Buildings Fund

This month we're highlighting our Efficient Buildings Fund (EBF), which provides attractive, long-term financing to our municipal and quasi-public partners for the completion of energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. EBF seeks to finance energy retrofits in public buildings that will result in electric and heating savings greater than 20% across all properties receiving improvements. To date, we've made $61 million in loans through the EBF, resulting in over $100 million in energy cost savings.

Projects like implementing energy conservation measures in East Providence's new, state-of-the-art high school. Financed via a $24 million EBF loan, efficiency measures are projected to save the city over 18.5 million kWh of electricity, and by financing the project through the Infrastructure Bank at below market interest rates, the city will save almost $1 million on debt service payments.
Infrastructure Bank In The News

“The people of Rhode Island support clean drinking water [improvements] massively,” said Diehl. “Rhode Island really leverages our water program, in a positive way, more than any other state in the country, on a relative basis. We’re investing a lot more than what is just coming from the federal programs.”

Diehl said that thanks to state and federal funding, Rhode Island towns and cities "have an unprecedented opportunity to invest in critical clean and drinking water infrastructure." He said the Infrastructure Bank anticipates receiving more than $700 million over five years for water projects, including $141 million to replace lead pipes and $41 million to address contaminants such as PFAS and other "forever chemicals" that have made their way into the state's groundwater.

The town engineer Hall said this portion of the project is replacing the remainder of the force main along Memorial Boulevard that Middletown is responsible for. All told, Hall said about 1,660 linear feet of the pipe will be slip lined . . . Funding for the project is through the Middletown Sewer Fund as well as the Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank.