The Microgrids for Community Resilience (MCR) grant program is designed to build community resilience regarding electric grid disruptions through the development of microgrids.
Donor Name: Colorado Department of Local Affairs
State: Colorado
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: All Time
Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $100,000
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
Funding Information
- A total of $140,490 is available through this NOFA. Funds are rolling until expended.
- Applications should not exceed the maximum award of $75,000.
- At least one-third local match is required. In-kind contributions are eligible as match.
- Awards made under this NOFA will need to be spent ideally by April 1, 2026, with the project closed out by June 30, 2026.
Types of Eligible Planning Projects
All applications must propose planning for microgrid resources that increase the community’s resilience regarding interruptions to the electric grid that can be caused by severe weather or natural disaster events. Through this funding opportunity, applicants may pursue service territory-wide or project-specific explorations of the following eligible activities.
Planning/scoping, feasibility, preliminary designs, or final design studies that:
- Have an associated implementation/action plan, which creates a roadmap for utilities/communities
- Establish a community’s potential for microgrid projects, including scale, size, and cost
- Evaluate existing infrastructure risks and vulnerability and develop recommendations to integrate resiliency into forthcoming microgrid-related project(s)
- Integrate and incorporate supplemental plans, such as:
- Vulnerability assessments (socioeconomic, infrastructure, climate/extreme weather)
- Engagement to understand community need associated with anchor institutions and essential infrastructure
- Microgrid-tied resources and energy efficiency assessments, reports, or recommendations (e.g., energy efficiency and demand side management, energy performance contracting, and existing or planned distributed energy resources).
Eligible Applicants
- Rural electric cooperative associations and municipally-owned utilities are eligible to apply.
- Proposed microgrid project(s)/plans must serve one or more eligible rural communities located within the applicant’s service territory. Rural communities are defined as a county with a population of less than 50,000 or a municipality/unincorporated area with a population of less than 25,000. The population criteria applies to the community/communities that the microgrid serves and is located in. You may refer to the Populations of Colorado Counties, Municipalities, and Unincorporated Areas for clarity on the definition of rural.
- In compliance with the 40101d FOA, utilities serving tribes may apply for funding.
For more information, visit Colorado Department of Local Affairs.
