The Tourism Department on Wednesday signed an MoU with The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) to carry out an energy audit of all its properties.
It was signed by OTDC General Manager M R Patnaik and TERI Director Mili Majumdar.
“TERI will carry out an energy audit of all our properties and advise us on changes that can be brought in our utilities to save power. This apart, TERI will advise us to ensure that our future constructions are Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment (GRIHA) compliant,” said Patnaik.
The decision was taken during the World Tourism Day celebrations last year which had the theme of ‘Tourism & Sustainable Energy: Powering Sustainable Development’.
GRIHA has been conceived by TERI and developed jointly with the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. It is a green building design evaluation system, and is suitable for all kinds of buildings in various climatic zones of the country.
The OTDC which runs a chain of utilities is expecting a 30 per cent reduction in energy costs after TERI suggestions are implemented in its buildings. Sources said the energy bills of all the OTDC utilities in the State per month would be in the range of Rs 40 to 45 lakh.
“TERI officials will also undertake training programme for OTDC officials in energy conservation,” Patnaik added.