Honeywell International is anticipating continued progress with Eastern and its Renewable Energy Center project.

“We look forward to continuing the relationship on this and future projects,” said Aaron Parker, public relations manager for Honeywell’s Building Solutions.

President Bill Perry announced Tuesday the $40 million Renewable Energy Center project had been halted because of the struggling economy and credit markets.

In his statement, he said alternative funds are being considered for the project.

Perry, who is out of the office today, said a contract bid between Eastern and Honeywell for construction of the center was pulled off the Board of Trustees’ agenda for its Friday meeting.

Prior to Perry’s announcement, construction on the center was scheduled to begin in the spring semester.

Parker said Honeywell was not aware of Eastern’s decision to delay the project until late Tuesday night.

“We don’t have all the details at this point,” he said.

Parker said Honeywell has been working with Eastern for almost a decade, helping the university build a more energy-efficient campus.

“We’ll support the university in its efforts to evaluate the viability of the center and other conservation measures that were jointly developed as part of this process,” he said.

The other conservation measures included a small wind turbine farm and the replacement of windows in the South Quad residence halls and Stevenson Hall.

The center and other projects were all a part of findings revealed in Eastern’s energy audit that was conducted earlier in the semester.

Honeywell was contracted to perform the audit. The result of the audit generated $80 million in possible energy savings for the university.

On Tuesday, Jill Nilsen, vice president for external relations, said planning for the energy center project went on for several months. After the planning started, Eastern saw the economy change, she said.

“The hope was things would get better by now, but they haven’t,” Nilsen said. “It just makes good fiscal sense to wait a little bit longer in time.”

Perry did not list a date to when the project could be reactivated. Nilsen said the project is delayed for an indefinite time.

“For us to do the kind of financing that we need to do for that project, it is just not the right time,” she said. “It doesn’t look like it is going to get better immediately.”

Nilsen added Eastern would wait until the economy stabilizes to go ahead with the project.

The center would have replaced the steam plant, which was built around 1925.

Last winter, a coal boiler in the steam plant broke down that resulted in using higher cost natural gas for heating the university.

Prior to being placed on hold, the center was supposed to commission in fall 2010.

Stephen Di Benedetto can be reached at 581-7942 or at sdibenedetto@eiu.edu.