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Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and other state and federal funding announcements
The Minnesota Department of Commerce seeks to work with and facilitate connections with local and Tribal governments, utilities, businesses, communities and other entities interested in energy-related partnerships. The opportunities outlined below are funded by the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act (IIJA), the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and other state and federal programs.
Announcements: Department of Commerce Energy Programs
Request for Proposals
Title: Minnesota Home Energy Rebates Program Design and Application Support
Commerce Request for Proposal Page
Reference Number: COMM_PIE01_20240108
Description of Work
The Minnesota Department of Commerce (“Department”) seeks strategic program design and application support as it prepares to apply for the US Department of Energy (“DOE”) Home Energy Rebate Programs. The selected vendor is expected to provide program design services, including stakeholder engagement and workforce planning, and present the Department with analysis and recommendations at key decision points throughout the planning process. It is also expected that the selected vendor will coordinate with the Department’s existing energy programs and initiatives, aligning multiple activities to ensure maximum benefit to Minnesotans in an equitable manner. The Department also seeks application support that incorporates elements of the program design.
Updated and Revised Deadlines: Questions Due – Wednesday, January 23, 2024 - 5:00 PM Central Time Responses Posted – Tuesday, January 30, 2024 Proposals Due – Monday, February 6, 2024 - 5:00 PM Central Time
Additional Documents – Please visit the Commerce Request for Proposal Page for additional documents and to view the solicitation.
New Commerce Energy Program Web Pages
As new federal and state funding programs are developed, Commerce will be developing web pages with updated information. New web pages include:
Energy-related Funding Awards to Minnesota Entities
Read on to learn more about the most recent innovative Minnesota energy projects (listed by Funding Opportunity Program), and the funding they have been awarded. Congratulations to all the recipients!
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DOE Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) 2023 Sustainable Energy for Consumers (SERC) Awards: Ten DOE WAP grantees, including the Minnesota WAP program, have been awarded a total of $15.2 million to support the weatherization network in implementing innovative technologies. The $3 million awarded to MN WAP program, managed by Commerce’s Energy Affordability section, is for the Minnesota Efficiency Window Replacement Project, a program to replace deteriorated windows with high performing windows on up to 89 single-family homes.
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DOE Vehicle Technologies Office Program Wide Funding Opportunities Selections FY2023: The DOE recently selected 16 projects, including a St. Paul based project, to advance technology critical to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector. Minnesota Clean Cities Coalition/American Lung Association in St. Paul will receive $1 million under the Clean Cities Network Outreach, Education and Training Category of funding for their project titled Great River Corridor Collaboration. Projects selected under the overall VTO program focus on: reducing EV infrastructure costs, outreach to consumers, development of new clean transportation opportunities, and outreach, education and training for underserved communities.
DOE National Community Solar Partnership (NCSP) has announced three Minnesota projects are amongst the 25 selectees who will receive $50,000 and technical assistance during development of their Phase 2 Community Solar project development.
* Minneapolis Climate Action – Community Solar EmPOWERing Our City and People
* Cooperative Energy Futures – Equitable Community Solar – The Cooperative Model
* Tribuquent – Feather Light Energy Project (Tribal nations in Minnesota and Oklahoma)
Entities can claim a $200,000 award if selected under the Phase 2 competition; up to $400,000 can be won under all phases of the Prize competition. The goal of this prize is to expand a robust ecosystem of community solar project developers that incorporate meaningful benefits into projects by addressing the gaps in expertise, capacity and pre-development funds for community solar developers.
To ensure we include your project award in future editions of our newsletter, please send the following information to [email protected] project title, award amount, total project cost, a brief description of the project, and funding program title and number.
Recent and Expected Federal Funding Activity
The federal government issues a variety of announcements related to federal funding opportunities: Requests for Information (RFI), Notices of Intent (NOI) and energy Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOA). More information can be found on the Commerce Federal Funding Opportunities web page or by clicking the links below.
To facilitate a quick review of this newsletter, the subject matter of included items is previewed here; full details can be found in the body of the newsletter.
Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOA), Administrative and Legal Requirements Document (ALRD), Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), Requests for Applications (RFA)
- Enabling a Reduced Carbon Footprint for Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery (CO2-EOR)/Storage Field Test Sites in Unconventional Reservoirs
- Energy Infrastructure Reinvestment (EIR) Section 1706 Program
- Grid Resilience Technical Assistance Consortium (GRACI)
- All Hazards Energy Resilience
- Nuclear Data Interagency Working Group (NDIAWG) Research Program
- Marine Energy University Foundational Research and Development
Request for Information (RFI)
- Deadline Extended - Progression to Net-Zero Emission Propulsion Technologies for the Rail Sector
- Developing a National Definition for a Zero Emissions Building
Rebates
- Clean School Bus Rebates *Closing Soon*
Prizes/Awards
- Solutions for Lasting, Viable Energy Infrastructure Technologies (SOLVE IT) Prize
Student Scholarships/Competitions/Fellowships
- Request Time on a Supercomputer for Clean Energy Research
- University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment Seeks Organizational Partners for Student Internships
Technical Assistance
- Onsite Energy Technical Assistance Partnerships (TAPs)
- The Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP)
Webinars
- Building Energy Codes Program (BECP) Energy Code Webinar Series
- How Cities can Take Advantage of Direct Pay
- Opportunities for Partnerships that Create Good Jobs and Address Equity Through the IRA, IIJA, and the CHIPS Act
- The (Not So) Shocking Shift Towards Industrial Electrification
- Getting Ready to Apply for the Climate Pollution Reduction Implementation Grants – Tribes Competition
- Opportunities for Positive Community Impact through Equitable Renewable Energy Projects
- Demand is the New Supply – Affordable Grid Stability through Demand-Side Solutions
- International Ground Source Heat Pump Association’s Dig Deeper
- Mainstreaming Biodiversity into Renewable Power Infrastructure
Workshops, Meetings, Conferences
- DOE Energy Transition Summit: Grid Modernization Initiative and Clean Energy Cybersecurity
- DOE Small Business Forum and Expo
- National Community Solar Partnership Annual Summit
Publications/Videos/Webpages
- Building for the Future Funding Navigator
- 2024 Bridges Bioenergy Case Studies Resources
- Grid Resilience and Transmission Planning Resources
- Expanding Solar Energy Opportunities from Rooftops to Building Integration
- DOE Captures Electricity Trends in the 2023 Standard Scenarios Report
- Climate Change in the American Mind: Beliefs & Attitudes, Fall 2023
- Mainstreaming Biodiversity into Renewable Power Infrastructure
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Other Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOA)
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Enabling a Reduced Carbon Footprint for Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery (CO2-EOR)/Storage Field Test Sites in Unconventional Reservoirs
DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management has allocated up to $46.4 million in funding to support research projects around one topic area: Evaluating and Validating the Incremental Oil Production via CO2-EOR Injection in Unconventional Oil Reservoirs Using Horizontal, Hydraulically Fractured Wells and Assessing the CO2 Storage Potential.
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Energy Infrastructure Reinvestment (EIR) Section 1706 Program
The DOE’s Loan Program Office (LPO) has opened its $250 billion Energy Infrastructure Reinvestment (EIR, Section 1706) category of the Title 17 Clean Energy Financing Program. This financing is for projects that reinvest in existing US energy infrastructure, usually for large-scale ($100 million+) energy-related projects. The Energy Infrastructure Reinvestment financing can support projects that retool, repower, repurpose, or replace energy infrastructure that has ceased operations, or upgrade operating energy infrastructure to avoid, reduce, utilize, or sequester air pollutants or greenhouse gas emissions.
Potential applicants should contact the Loan Programs Office for a free pre-application consultation.
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Grid Resilience Technical Analysis and Climate Change Impacts (GRACI)
DOE Grid Deployment Office has up to $2 million in funding to build regional consortiums of universities, nonprofit organizations, and industry to provide technical assistance to 40101d Grid Resilience State and Tribal Formula Grant recipients and sub-awardees. Consortium members who can offer grid resilience planning and decision-making TA, leveraging existing models, tools, and methodologies that would allow for rapid decision-making, prioritization, and community benefits. The main role of a regional Consortium includes rapid analysis of climate change threats and impact on grid infrastructure, developing best practices for grid operations, and providing analysis and information to state energy officials, public service commissions, and utilities for grid resilience planning.
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All Hazards Energy Resilience
DOE Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) has released this FOA with up to $136 million in funding to support projects targeting improvements to one or more of the following energy sector processes: Electricity generation, transmission, or distribution (including renewables, energy management systems, and electric vehicles, etc.); and oil and natural gas production, refining, storage, or distribution. Proposals are being sought in six topic areas:
* Operate through Compromise;
* Adaptable Zero-Trust Architecture;
* RD&D of Risk Management Tools and Technologies for Natural Hazards;
* RD&D of Tools and Technologies for Energy Infrastructure Resilience to Wildfires;
* Physical Security Improvements for Utility Power Substations;
* University-Based RD&D: Scalable Cyber-Physical Platform.
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Nuclear Data Interagency Working Group (NDIAWG) Research Program
- DE-FOA-0003238
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Deadlines: Letter of Intent: February 5, 2024 | Application: April 4, 2024
DOE Office of Science (SC) Program in Nuclear Physics (NP) and the DOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Research and Development released a FOA to build the nuclear data community workforce. Goals of the funding include increasing entry points into the nuclear data evaluator community, supporting retention of evaluators, and investing in nuclear data evaluator capacity to be directly involved with research. Applications are being accepted in the following areas:
Sub-topic 1: Nuclear Evaluator Traineeships
Sub-topic 2: Nuclear Data Trainee Schools
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Marine Energy University Foundational Research and Development
- DE-FOA-0003097
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Deadlines: Concept Paper: February 20, 2024 | Application: April 22, 2024
- Webinar: January 24, 2024 | 2:00 PM CT |Register
DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy is issuing this FOA on behalf of the Water Power Technologies Office and Wind Energy Technologies Office with up to $14.5 million in funding to support foundational research at domestic institutions of higher education, including Minority Serving Institutions. Funded projects will address challenges faced by marine energy industries and spur innovation and development, concentrating in four topic areas:
Topic Area 1: Publicly Available Marine Energy Data Analysis & Test Platform(s) to Produce Publicly Available Date
Topic Area 2: Sustainable & Scalable Offshore Wind, Marine Energy, and Aquaculture
Topic Area 3: Undergraduate Senior Design and/or Research Project
Topic Area 4: Open Topic Area
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Request for Information (RFI)
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Deadline Extended - Progression to Net-Zero Emission Propulsion Technologies for the Rail Sector
DOE has released an RFI to understand applicable decarbonization strategies for the rail sector, which generates two percent of U.S. transportation GHG emissions. Feedback is being solicited from industry, academia, research laboratories, government agencies, other stakeholders, and the public on issues related to alternative propulsion technology advancement within the rail sector and achieving net-zero GHG emissions. Two critical questions related to a rail decarbonization strategy include:
1. Which alternative rail propulsion technologies are most promising technically and economically?
2. What is the timeline for the rail sector to transition to net-zero emission technologies?
- Developing a National Definition for a Zero Emissions Building
DOE’s Building Technology Office has released this RFI to gain input on Part 1 of a draft National Definition for a Zero Emissions Building. The definition will provide a framework which will provide designers and builders pathways to influence the design and operation of buildings and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The proposed definition of a zero emissions building includes: 1) highly energy efficient, 2) free of on-site emissions from energy use, and 3) powered solely by clean energy.
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Rebates
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Clean School Bus Rebates *Closing Soon*
Through the EPA Clean School Bus Program, school districts and fleet operators can use federal funds to cover the cost of new electric school buses and charging infra-structure. The Clean School Bus Rebates program is a lottery, with priority for low-income, rural, and Tribal schools. Priority districts that are selected will be awarded up to $345,000 per electric school bus. Districts that don’t meet the priority criteria but are selected for funding will be awarded up to $200,000 per electric school bus.
All public-school districts are eligible to apply for funding. Nonprofit school transportation associations and certain types of eligible contractors including school bus dealers, Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), school bus service providers, and private school bus fleets that provide school bus transportation services, are eligible to apply directly to the program on school districts’ behalf with their approval.
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Prizes/Awards
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Solutions for Lasting, Viable Energy Infrastructure Technologies (SOLVE IT) Prize
DOE’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, along with the Office of Technology Transitions and the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy have opened the Solutions for Lasting, Viable Energy Infrastructure Technologies (SOLVE IT) Prize application window.
The SOLVE IT Prize offers a total prize pool of $5 million in cash prizes. Teams may win up to $730,000 each across three phases of the SOLVE IT prize.
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Scholarships/Student Competitions/Fellowships
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Request Time on NREL's Kestrel Supercomputer for Clean Energy Research
DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) provides high-performance computing to support the mission of the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). Kestrel is the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL) state-of-the-art high-performance computing system dedicated to advancing renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies. NREL has limited opportunities available for university students to access Kestrel for their own research supporting clean energy.
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University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment Seeking Organizational Partners for Student Internships
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Potential Supervisors Deadline: January 31, 2024 | Learn More
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Internship Dates: June 3 – August 9, 2024
The University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment provides undergraduate internships focused on the Institute’s goals around energy transition, clean water, and sustainable land use. The Institute on the Environment is currently looking for business or organization partners to host summer interns.
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Technical Assistance
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Onsite Energy Technical Assistance Partnerships (TAPs)
Large energy users can receive assistance from the DOE’s Onsite Energy program and Technical Assistance Partnerships (TAPs). TAPs can help industrial and other large energy users to transition to clean energy. Onsite Energy TAPs help facilities integrate energy technologies by providing regionally specific services including: technical assistance, end user engagement, and stakeholder engagement. TAPs can advise industries on distributed technologies including battery storage, combined heat and power, district energy, fuel cells, geothermal, industrial heat pumps, renewable fuels, solar photovoltaics, solar thermal, thermal storage, and wind generated power.
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The Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP)
Minnesota businesses can receive technical assistance from the Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP). MnTAP is an outreach program at the University of Minnesota that helps Minnesota businesses develop and implement industry-tailored solutions to prevent pollution at the source, maximize efficient use of resources, and reduce energy use and costs to improve public health and the environment.
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Webinars
- Building Energy Codes Program (BECP) Energy Code Webinar Series
This monthly DOE webinar series will provide an opportunity to learn about energy code topics.
Best Practices for Understanding and Improving Compliance: Filed Studies, Circuit Riders, and more | January 18, 2024 | 12:00 PM CT | Register
Addressing Existing Buildings: Building Performance Standards and Implementation Support Tools | February 15, 2024 | 12:00 PM CT |Register
Energy Code Enforcement Challenges and Opportunities in Rural Communities | March 21, 2024 | 12:00 PM CT |Register
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How Cities Can Take Advantage of Direct Pay
- January 25, 2024 | 1:00 PM CT | Register
Join the BlueGreen Alliance, the Center for American Progress, Lawyers for Good Government, and the National League of Cities for a virtual briefing on how cities, towns, and villages can take advantage of direct pay programs and tax credit bonuses. This webinar will assist municipal officials better understand how to use direct pay to claim federal clean energy incentives.
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Opportunities for Partnerships that Create Good Jobs and Address Equity Through the IRA, IIJA, and the CHIPS Act
- January 18, 2024 | 1:00 PM CT | Register
This webinar is hosted by the Workforce Alliance and will provide understanding about how strong community partnerships between those seeking federal funding are important in order to be successful in receiving funding from government opportunities.
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The (Not So) Shocking Shift Towards Industrial Electrification
- January 23, 2024 | 10:00 AM CT | Register
Join the DOE’s Better Buildings Initiative in this discussion on industrial electrification strategies and insights.
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Getting Ready to Apply for the Climate Pollution Reduction Implementation Grants – Tribes Competition
- January 24, 2024 | 3:00 PM CT | Register
Join EPA for a webinar for Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) implementation grants for Tribes competition. As the May 1st deadline for submitting applications approaches, EPA is providing a webinar to refresh on the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) application requirements, key deadlines, and a detailed discussion of evaluation criteria.
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Opportunities for Positive Community Impact through Equitable Renewable Energy Projects
- January 25, 2024 | 1:00 PM CT | Register
The Center for Resource Solutions brings together experts from Google, HBCU Green Fund, Pivot Energy, and Reactivate to discuss considerations for renewable energy projects in low to moderate income communities.
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Demand is the New Supply
- January 25, 2024 | 3:00 PM CT | Register
Alliance to Save Energy brings the main points from their white paper, “Demand is the New Supply – Affordable Grid Stability through Demand-Side Solutions. Topics include: Addressing Critical Challenges, Costs and Environmental Advantages, and Path to Energy Equality.
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International Ground Source Heat Pump Association’s Dig Deeper
- January 26, 2024 | 10:30 AM CT | Register
The January Dig Deeper Webinar will be presented with the DOE on the topic of Ground Source Heat Pump Impact Analysis.
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Workshops/Meetings/Conferences
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DOE Energy Transition Summit: Grid Modernization Initiative and Clean Energy Cybersecurity
This summit will be hosted and led by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Grid Modernization Initiative and Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response. Emphasis will focus on the themes of the DOE Grid Modernization Initiative and Clean Energy Cybersecurity.
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DOE Small Business Forum and Expo
The 2024 Forum and Expo is hosted by the DOE’s Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization. Jennifer Granholm, Secretary of the US Department of Energy will be a Keynote speaker. Breakout sessions will include speakers from many of the DOE Laboratories and offices who will provide information on procurement opportunities and initiatives.
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National Community Solar Partnership Annual Summit - Virtual
The DOE’s Solar Technology Office will host the fourth annual National Community Solar Partnership (NCSP). This virtual Summit will focus on theme of Community Solar – Deploying Benefits & Delivering Impacts. The 2024 NCSP Annual Summit will convene NCSP members and other community solar stakeholders to learn about new tools and resources to accelerate community solar deployment, engage with community solar leaders from across the nation, and explore the roles organizations can play in rapidly deploying community solar to deliver benefits for all.
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Publications/Videos/Webpages
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Building for the Future Funding Navigator
The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has created a navigator to assist in finding funding opportunities provided by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), as well as other funding opportunities across various federal agencies. Tribes and Tribally Designated Housing Entities can use the navigator to filter search results specific to federally recognized Tribes.
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2024 BRIDGES Bioenergy Case Studies Resources
The Bioenergy Research and Education Bridge Program (BRIDGES) is a case study-based education curriculum created by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) in partnership with Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) and Idaho National Laboratory (INL). The curriculum is geared towards high school and college students and designed to encourage careers in bioenergy. Depending on the student level, each case study curriculum should take at least 3 classroom hours to complete. Case study themes include:
* Farm to Flight: Are Sustainable Aviation Fuels Good for the Environment?
* Upcycling: Could my Plastic Bag Someday Become the Sustainable Alternative?
* Regional Feedstocks: Are they the Answer to Achieving a Net Zero Future?
* Municipal Solid Waste-to-Energy: Traditional Ecology and Environmental Justice
- Grid Resilience and Transmission Planning Resources
DOE’s Grid Deployment Office (GDO) has created an interactive tool that helps to identify transmission planning and grid resilience financing programs from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act. Grid and Transmission Program Conductor
The GDO has also created a resource hub for Transmission Planning and State and Tribal Grid Resilience. The hub contains resources specific to community partners to ensure that community benefits are maximized. State and Tribal Grid Resilience and Transmission Planning Resource Hub
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Expanding Solar Energy Opportunities from Rooftops to Building Integration
This article from DOE’s Solar Energy Technologies Office breaks down building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV), a concept that differs from traditional rooftop solar by integrating solar generating technology into the building structure itself through areas like the roof, awnings, facades, or windows.
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DOE Captures Electricity Trends in the 2023 Standard Scenarios Report
The Standard Scenarios Report is produced by the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) and provides a snapshot of where the US electricity sector is heading. The report shows a variety of possible future scenarios, while highlighting potential new clean energy capacity, the related CO2 reductions, and related costs.
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Climate Change in the American Mind: Beliefs & Attitudes, Fall 2023
Published by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, this report is based on data from a nationally representative survey conducted in Fall 2023.
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Mainstreaming Biodiversity into Renewable Power Infrastructure
- January 30, 2024 | 8:00 AM CT | Register
This webinar discusses key findings and recommendations from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report on Mainstreaming Biodiversity into Renewable Power Infrastructure.
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Energy-specific funding opportunities, Commerce is here for you
The Minnesota Department of Commerce seeks to work with and facilitate connections with local and Tribal governments, utilities, businesses, communities and other entities interested in energy-related partnerships. The opportunities outlined here are funded by the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act (IIJA), the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), and other federal and state energy programs. Interested in partnering with Commerce on funding opportunities or have questions? Stay updated by clicking subscribe below and e-mail us at [email protected].
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