The University of Massachusetts Amherst and Eversource, an energy provider serving customers in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire, have signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) continuing their decade-long partnership to advance energy efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support the university’s carbon mitigation goals in a cost-effective manner that helps the university manage its overall energy costs. 

The non-binding agreement runs through 2028 and includes working together to maximize energy efficiency on new construction and major renovation projects, supported by incentives administered by Eversource through the Mass Save® program. This is the third agreement signed by the University and Eversource since 2014. 

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“Renewing our strategic partnership with Eversource will support the university’s commitment to sustainability and enable further emissions reductions through the 2050 target year set by the commonwealth,” said Andrew Mangels, vice chancellor for administration and finance. “We are proud to have reduced our carbon emissions as of 2025 by more than 20%, an example of the shared commitment of the university and Eversource. Importantly, our partnership also benefits the university’s bottom line, helping to ensure we can meet our clean energy goals in a financially sustainable manner.”

Working with Eversource over the last 12 years, the campus has accumulated annual electrical use savings of 34,000,000 kWh, the equivalent of taking roughly 3,100 homes worth of electricity off the grid.  The campus also reduced summer peak electrical loads by 3,950 kW through cumulative efficiency upgrades. Among the partnership’s notable projects are the new Computer Science Laboratories and Sustainable Engineering Laboratories, served by the newly constructed North Energy Exchange Center and its 640-ton-ground-loop heat pumps system. By connecting both facilities to shared district energy loop rather than constructing separate geothermal systems for each building, UMass Amherst is improving efficiency while reducing infrastructure costs. 

Other efforts under the partnership have focused on testing and implementing cutting-edge energy and sustainability technologies, by converting buildings from fossil fuels to electric power, upgrading older buildings to operate more efficiently, and optimizing cooling systems to make laboratory space more sustainable. UMass Amherst and Eversource are also exploring ways to reduce the campus’s electricity demand during period of peak grid use through demand response initiatives, battery and thermal energy storage and enhanced building management controls. 

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“Over the past 12 years, our partnership with UMass Amherst has demonstrated what can be achieved when organizations work together toward shared energy and sustainability goals,” said Tilak Subrahmanian, vice president of energy efficiency and electric mobility at Eversource. “This renewed agreement builds on that momentum, creating new opportunities to improve energy efficiency, reduce peak demand and advance the university’s decarbonization goals in a cost-effective manner. Together, we look forward to supporting innovative projects that will help create a more resilient and sustainable campus for years to come while also helping the university manage its energy costs.”

The agreement also supports workforce development and the university’s broader transportation goals. Eversource will help connect UMass students with available co-operative study and internship opportunities. The partners will also collaborate on UMass Amherst’s electric mobility roadmap by continuing to install EV charging stations to reduce carbon emissions from fleet and personal vehicles.