The Indiana Office of Energy Development is seeking applications for its Empowering Energy Partnerships in Indiana Communities.
Donor Name: Indiana Office of Energy Development
State: Indiana
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 05/01/2024
Size of the Grant: $100,000 to $500,000
Grant Duration: 3 Years
Details:
The Indiana Office of Energy Development is committed to affordable, stable, and reliable energy solutions for the benefit of all Hoosiers. Indiana OED supports the development of comprehensive energy policy that supports a diverse and balanced portfolio of energy resources.
Program Goals
- Empowering Energy Partnerships in Indiana Communities (EPIC) is a community-based competitive grant program to address energy needs and priorities at a community or regional level. Applicants are encouraged to think big, and to consider how they can address their energy needs on a larger scale. The purpose of the EPIC grant program is to support a comprehensive energy solutions program tailored to specific communities and serve as a model for other communities across Indiana.
- The goals of the EPIC program are to support Indiana’s five pillars of electricity policy: reliability, resiliency, stability, affordability, and environmental sustainability. Each proposal is encouraged to support as many of the five pillars as possible with a measurable impact.
- Proposals must be able to demonstrate public benefit to their communities, including but not limited to underserved and disadvantaged communities. Successful applicants will serve as a model for other communities with similar energy needs and goals. Awardees will share their progress during the project and their success upon project completion.
- Further, to support broader local and state priorities, awarded projects will demonstrate a connection to one or more of the following state priorities: economic development, workforce development, education, and public safety. Partnerships are expected to be an essential element.
Funding Information
- Indiana OED is making approximately $2,500,000 available.
- OED anticipates awards averaging $300,000 to $500,000 per awardee.
Project Period
3 years or less.
Eligible Projects & Technologies
Proposals must fall into one or more of the following topics. Example technologies are listed but
are not exhaustive.
- Energy Efficiency- Includes projects that result in using less energy, such as:
- Building upgrades and retrofits
- Energy system technology to monitor and manage energy usage
- Weatherization measures
- Higher efficiency technology, equipment, and appliances
- Alternative Fueling and Charging Infrastructure-Includes projects for publicly accessible alternative fueling and/or charging infrastructure to reduce energy consumption and reduce local emissions. Vehicle purchases are not allowable under EPIC. Alternative fuels include
biodiesel (B20+), compressed natural gas, electric, ethanol, hydrogen, liquid natural gas, propane, and renewable diesel (R20+). Examples include:- Publicly accessible electric vehicle charging infrastructure (excluding Level 3 or DC fast charging)
- Vehicle-to-Grid technology development and/or deployment
- Publicly accessible alternative fuel fueling infrastructure
- Energy Security and Reliability-Includes projects that support resource adequacy, and support responses to and recovery from energy emergencies, shortages, or disruptions.
Examples include:- Backup generation (battery energy system storage, solar + battery storage, propane)
- Microgrid technologies
- Cybersecurity measures
- Clean Energy Resources- Includes projects that result in the use of renewable and other
clean energy technologies, such as:- Battery storage
- Solar (and solar + battery)
- Geothermal
- Wind
- Biomass
Eligibility Criteria
- Eligible entities include local units of government, non-profit organizations, for-profit entities, and institutions of higher education. Entities that work throughout a community or region and can coordinate partnerships are strongly encouraged, such as local and regional economic development organizations, community foundations, and other organizations that participate in community development initiatives.
- Eligible entities must be Indiana based and registered with both the federal and state governments in order to receive award fund
- An eligible entity may submit only one proposal. An entity can coordinate submission on behalf of multiple beneficiaries. A community may be a part of multiple submissions as long as they are not the prime applicant (i.e., the one executing the grant agreement with OED) in more than one submission. Tiered subawards are not allowable under the federal award, so the prime recipient may only release funds to subcontractors to perform work on the project and may not make further subawards.
For more information, visit OED.
