$0 Energy Bill For New Building

A New York Times article describes the largest net-zero energy office building in the nation. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s Research Support Facility building in Golden, Colorado is cited as a template for how to do affordable, super-energy-efficient construction. It uses off-the-shelf technologies, such as window louvers that cast rays up into the interior office spaces and giant concrete mass in the sub-basement to hold and store radiant heat. The construction cost of the building, which opened earlier this year, was $259 a square foot, nearly $77 below the average cost of a new super-efficient commercial office building.