THE MBTA plans to spend about $30 million over the next three years on energy efficiency measures, with more than 40 percent of the cost covered by $12.5 million in grants and financial incentives paid for by Massachusetts electricity ratepayers.

Officials described the arrangement as MassSAVE on steroids, a reference to the utility program that offers free energy audits and subsidized energy efficiency measures to commercial and residential building owners across the state. The program, expected to cost $2.8 billion over the next three years, is administered by the state’s utilities and financed with assessments on electric bills.

The program has had significant success, with Massachusetts named the most energy efficient state in the nation eight years in a row.

The MBTA said it plans to spend $30 million over three years installing new LED lights, lighting controls, upgraded HVAC equipment, and building automation controls at close to 50 of its properties, including garages, maintenance facilities, bus yards, and train stations.

The MBTA is the state’s largest electricity consumer, and the energy efficiency initiatives are forecasted to reduce electricity usage by 7 percent and save $2.7 million a year.

To help offset the T’s investment, Eversource Energy and National Grid, through the energy efficiency programs they administer, are kicking in a total of $9 million in incentives. The Department of Energy Resources is contributing another $3.5 million, with the bulk of those funds coming from assessments on retail electricity suppliers; the assessments are ultimately paid by electric ratepayers through charges included in their electric bills.