The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced its Clean Energy to Communities program offering up to $50 million to communities to transition to clean energy systems.
The Clean Energy to Communities program (C2C) will connect local governments, electric utilities, community-based groups, and others with the innovative modeling and testing tools developed at DOE’s national laboratories to meet their clean energy goals.
US President Joe Biden’s goal is to decarbonize the electric grid by 2035 and achieve a net-zero emissions economy by 2050.
“With C2C, we’re helping all kinds of communities — from small rural communities to sprawling urban areas — access the tools and scientific and technological expertise they need to bring their energy systems into the 21st Century” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm.
C2C provides integrated technical support to communities across renewable power, grid, mobility, and buildings sectors. The program seeks to provide the type and amount of support communities require to meet their unique interests and needs in transitioning to a clean energy economy. For C2C’s in-depth partnerships, this includes funding to support program participation.
C2C is led and managed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), with additional support from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
C2C builds upon NREL’s Los Angeles 100 percent Renewable Energy Study, which evaluated a range of scenarios to help stakeholders understand possible pathways to the city’s goal of 100 percent renewable energy by 2045.