News
Utilize SLOPE's Scenario Planner Tool to Support Your Jurisdiction's Energy and Decarbonization Planning
The State and Local Planning for Energy (SLOPE) Platform's new, ground-breaking Scenario Planner tool visualizes scenarios for future energy consumption, CO2 emissions, and system costs of a selected state or county. Users can select and explore various energy planning pathways, including grid decarbonization and electrification strategies, in isolation and in combination to showcase how different scenarios compare and interact.
Learn more about the Scenario Planner and see a live demonstration in our upcoming webinar, listed in the Events section below.
The SLOPE Platform integrates and delivers data on energy efficiency, renewable energy, and sustainable transportation into an easy-to-access online platform to enable data-driven state and local energy planning.
Contact slope@nrel.gov with any questions or feedback about this new tool.
New Tool for Finding Federal Policies and Incentives Related to EV Batteries and Stationary Energy Storage
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the Federal Consortium for Advanced Batteries (FCAB) recently published the Battery Policies and Incentives Search tool, a database of policies and incentives relevant to the U.S. battery industry. Use this tool to search for policies, incentives, executive orders, and regulations related to batteries for electric vehicle (EV) and stationary energy storage applications.
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory developed this tool with DOE to provide up-to-date access to battery supply chain legislation, including battery manufacturing, recycling, safety and transport, environmental impacts, critical domestic material, economic and workforce development, and the relevant battery implications of the Defense Production Act and the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. You may now search for related federal policies and incentives, and state data.
Please contact the Battery Policies and Incentives team with any questions about the database or any notable legislation to be included for your state.
DOE Announces New Round of Funding and Expanded Eligibility for Hydroelectric Production Incentive Program
The Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) is now accepting applications for the latest round of funding under the Hydroelectric Production Incentive Program under Section 242 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. A total of $7 million is available for qualified facilities based on the number of kilowatt-hours generated in calendar year 2020.
DOE is expanding its eligibility criteria for this year's round of funding due to recent amendments to Section 242 under the Energy Act of 2020. Additional hydroelectric facilities, such as those located in communities with inadequate electric service, may now be eligible to receive incentive payments. The maximum payment per facility has also been increased to $1 million per year (an increase from the $750,000 limit in the previous round).
Visit the WPTO website for more information and guidance. Applications are due Feb. 10, 2022.
Last Call to Join the First-Ever 50001 Ready Wastewater Cohort
Wastewater treatment facilities are invited to join the first-ever 50001 Ready Wastewater Cohort, which is part of the DOE 50001 Ready Program. This cohort will learn how to implement a robust energy management system based on the global ISO 50001 energy management system standard.
Each cohort will be tailored to meet the needs of participating partners and includes 6–12 months of support from national ISO 50001 experts. Support will be delivered through
- Monthly cohort group training webinars.
- Monthly virtual coaching sessions with each site.
- On-demand guidance on the use of 50001 Ready tools and resources.
- Opportunities for peer-to-peer learning.
Organizations that complete implementation can receive 50001 Ready Recognition from DOE, which includes
- A project showcase and article across DOE websites and social media to amplify your success.
- A profile on DOE's recognition webpage.
- The right to display the 50001 Ready mark for as long as your annual recognition remains up to date.
Join the 23,000-plus sites worldwide benefiting from 50001 and get on a path toward deeper and more sustained energy and cost savings!
If your facility is interested in joining the cohort, please contact stateandlocal@ee.doe.gov.
New Podcast Series: 'People Powered'
DOE is pleased to announce the launch of People Powered, a new podcast series featuring the stories of real people working in the energy industry. Presented by Direct Current—An Energy.gov Podcast, the series will introduce remarkable individuals doing the work that's powering our clean energy revolution—sometimes in surprising ways.
Episode one and two are out now, with an introduction to the series from U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm. Episode one features Kaly Moore, a solar construction manager based in Washington, D.C., who talks about her journey to the solar industry, why the work matters to her, and her tips for jobseekers. In episode two, you will meet Michael Flores, a traveling wind technician, who shares how he got his start in wind energy, what it's like scaling massive wind turbines, what he does when the wind isn't blowing, and why he's planning to stick with a career in wind for the long haul.
Subscribe to Direct Current on Apple Podcast to hear more People Powered episodes or join the Direct Current email newsletter to get notified when a new episode is available.
Events
National Community Solar Partnership 2022 Annual Summit
Jan. 25, 2022, 11 a.m.–4 p.m. ET
The National Community Solar Partnership (NCSP) 2022 Annual Summit will take place on Jan. 25, 2022, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET. The theme of this year's summit is "To 5 Million and Beyond: Community Solar's Pathway to Success," which reflects the Partnership's new goal to power the equivalent of 5 million households with community solar by 2025, realizing $1 billion in energy bill savings for subscribers.
Join community solar stakeholders for this engaging event to learn more about how NCSP is supporting equitable community solar deployment and how your organization can help bring affordable community solar to 5 million households and beyond.
Free eProject eXpress Training
Feb. 14, 2022, 1–2 p.m. ET
DOE and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) released eProject eXpress (ePX), a streamlined tool to help state and local governments implement energy savings performance contracts (ESPC) and reap the benefits of energy efficiency. ePX unlocks new capabilities to meet the unique data management and reporting needs of the municipal and state governments, universities and colleges, schools, and hospitals market. Using ePX can significantly reduce customers' costs and staff time associated with tracking project data and contract agreements and clearly demonstrate the success of energy efficiency programs.
DOE and LBNL are providing a free, one-hour webinar designed to guide interested users through ePX operation so they can start using ePX to strengthen their ESPC projects and programs.
Register for the upcoming ePX training webinar.
In addition to the upcoming trainings, a recording of the July 2021 ePX launch event is now available on the Better Buildings Solution Center website.
SLOPE's Scenario Planner Tool Launch Webinar
Feb. 15, 2022, 2–3 p.m. ET
SLOPE's new, ground-breaking Scenario Planner tool visualizes scenarios for future energy consumption, CO2 emissions, and system costs of a selected state or county. Want to learn more about how the Scenario Planner can help your jurisdiction compare various scenarios?
Register for our launch webinar on Feb. 15, 2022, from 2 to 3 p.m. ET for a demonstration of the Scenario Planner's functionality and potential applications.
State and Local Leaders in the News
The Maryland Energy Administration's Low-to-Moderate Income (LMI) Community Solar Program recently provided over $950,000 in grant funding to support what will be the largest 100% LMI community solar project in the country. The project will be located at a capped landfill and will have two 2-megawatt arrays solely for community use that will generate 7.65 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity every year. The site will also host a third 2-megawatt solar array which will be used by the Montgomery County, Maryland, government through a power purchase agreement, bringing total site production up to 11.7 million kWh of electricity per year.