Applications for local organizations to support the rollout of DOE-sponsored residential solar and battery installations for vulnerable Puerto Rican households now due October 10, 2023.
September 22, 2023
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Applications for local organizations to support the rollout of DOE-sponsored residential solar and battery installations for vulnerable Puerto Rican households now due October 10, 2023.
On July 31, 2023, the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Grid Deployment Office (GDO) announced the Solar Ambassador Prize, a funding opportunity for up to 20 community organizations to help accelerate the installation of residential solar and battery storage systems on roughly 30,000–40,000 homes across Puerto Rico. The application deadline for this program is now extended to October 10, 2023, at 5 PM AT/ET. In addition, the funding opportunity was increased from $3.5 million to $3.85 million.
The Solar Ambassador Prize is a funding opportunity through the Puerto Rico Energy Resilience Fund (PR-ERF) for organizations in Puerto Rico to assist DOE in identifying, engaging, and assisting with intake processing of qualifying households for residential solar and battery storage installations. By increasing the funding for this round of the Solar Ambassador Prize, up to 20 selected community organizations will receive $17,500 each in seed funding to conduct this work and will be eligible for additional compensation based on the number of households enrolled for residential solar and battery storage home inspections.
In December 2022, President Biden signed the Fiscal Year 2023 Consolidated Appropriations Act into law, which included $1 billion to establish the PR-ERF to enhance energy resilience for Puerto Rico’s most vulnerable households and communities and help the Commonwealth meet its goal of 100% renewable energy by 2050. On July 31, 2023, DOE released a Funding Opportunity Announcement through the PR-ERF for up to $450 million to support residential solar and battery storage deployment for Puerto Rico’s most vulnerable residents. The Solar Ambassador Prize is a complementary program to help identify and support qualifying households.
For more details on eligibility and other aspects of the Solar Ambassador Prize, please consult GDO’s Solar Ambassador Prize webpage and the Solar Ambassador Prize Rules.
Learn more about the Grid Deployment Office.