Project Marigold will provide sustainable and safe transportation to public school districts nationwide while supporting grid resilience, giving electricity back to the grid using battery-electric school buses when not in transit.
January 17, 2025
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Jigar Shah
Former Director, Loan Programs Office
Jigar Shah served as Director of the Loan Programs Office (LPO) at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) from March 2021 to January 2025. He led and directed LPO’s loan authority to support deployment of innovative clean energy, advanced transportation, and Tribal energy projects in the United States. Prior, Shah was co-founder and President at Generate Capital, where he focused on helping entrepreneurs accelerate decarbonization solutions through the use of low-cost infrastructure-as-a service financing. Prior to Generate Capital, Shah founded SunEdison, a company that pioneered “pay as you save” solar financing. After SunEdison, Shah served as the founding CEO of the Carbon War Room, a global non-profit founded by Sir Richard Branson and Virgin Unite to help entrepreneurs address climate change.
Shah was also featured in TIME's list of the "100 Most Influential People" in 2024.
Originally from Illinois, Shah holds a B.S. from the University of Illinois-UC and an MBA from the University of Maryland College Park.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Loan Programs Office (LPO) announced a conditional commitment for a loan guarantee of up to $705.1 million to Zum Energy Geo, LLC for Project Marigold to help finance the deployment of Battery-Electric Buses (BEB), seventeen BEB charging lots, bi-directional chargers, and associated transportation, charge management, and virtual power plant (VPP) software. The project will be deployed in at least thirteen public school districts in eight states. Zum Energy Geo, LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Zum Services, Inc. If finalized, Project Marigold will help the school districts electrify their bus fleets while also leveraging 396 MWh of total BEB battery capacity to support local grids and improve grid reliability during periods of peak electricity demand, a time when school buses are typically not in transit. Zum submitted its loan application to LPO in June 2022.
Today’s announcement will help ensure the Biden-Harris Administration’s clean energy and manufacturing jobs boom continues to benefit communities across the nation for generations to come. At full deployment, Project Marigold is expected to result in 962 construction and 54 permanent operations jobs. In addition to the jobs it creates, Project Marigold will maintain 2,912 jobs including drivers from Zum’s existing business using diesel-powered buses, underscoring the Administration’s deep commitment to ensuring no one and no community is left behind as the nation transitions to a cleaner energy future.
Project Marigold will serve school day routes during the academic year and provide transport to summer school classes, special events, and other activities. Through transportation services agreements established with each school district, Zum procures and maintains bus fleets; designs, develops and constructs bus yards with charging infrastructure; operates pick-up and drop-off routes; and coordinates participation in VPP programs. Zum currently serves over 4,000 schools across the country and has a proven track record supporting the first major school district in the U.S. to transition to a 100% BEB fleet, laying the groundwork for V2G-VPP services at scale.
Zum has integrated its own student transportation services platform with charge- and VPP-management software from leading providers in those spaces. This integrated platform manages real-time bus routing, scheduling, and charging times and cost, while optimizing transportation logistics and participation in VPP programs.
VPPs are aggregations of electrified, grid-connected devices, including BEBs. When paired with two-way charging systems, BEBs enable bidirectional vehicle-to-grid (V2G) energy transfer, allowing them to not only draw power from the grid but also supply energy and reliability services back. VPPs reduce utilities’ reliance on peaker plants and reduce the strain on transmission and distribution infrastructure by intelligently time-shifting and shaving electricity demand.
BEBs are well-suited for V2G applications due to their predictable routes, availability during peak demand hours, and capability to recharge overnight. Zum will take advantage of differences in time-of-use electricity prices by charging BEBs when electricity prices are lower and discharging during peak hours when electricity prices are higher. By discharging to the grid during evening peaks when electricity is at its most carbon-intensive, Zum’s BEBs will enhance grid flexibility while reducing GHG emissions by 27,000 metric tons annually. The BEB charging lots will be equipped with bi-directional chargers and associated V2G software, allowing each lot to operate as a VPP and generate additional revenue by providing grid services, including discharging electricity back to the grid.
LPO borrowers are required to develop and ultimately implement a comprehensive Community Benefits Plan that ensures meaningful community and labor engagement, improves the well-being of residents and workers, and incorporates strong labor standards during construction, operations, and throughout the life of the loan guarantee. Zum intends to sign Good Neighbor Agreements in each of the school districts within the first year and is committed to exploring Community Benefits Agreements in each community. Zum currently maintains collective bargaining agreements with labor unions at several of the bus yards it utilizes. Project Marigold will reduce noise and ambient air pollutants from diesel combustion, improving environmental, health, and educational outcomes for students and local communities.
Projects like the one announced today may benefit from the Alternative Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Tax Credit, also known as 30C, which was created by the Biden-Harris Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act and is available for EV chargers located in non-urban or low-income communities. Project Marigold’s chargers may be eligible for this 30C credit, adding to the nearly $900 million in investment the Biden-Harris Administration has already committed to transportation electrification for America’s schools, including schools in rural areas.
The loan guarantee would be offered through the Department of Energy’s Title 17 Clean Energy Financing Program, which includes financing opportunities for innovative energy and supply chain projects and projects that reinvest in existing energy infrastructure.
While this conditional commitment indicates DOE’s intent to finance the project, DOE, Zum, and Zum Energy Geo, LLC must satisfy certain technical, legal, environmental, and financial conditions before the Department decides whether to enter into definitive financing documents and fund the loan guarantee.