Governor Wes Moore has announced $17 million in grants to allow more income-qualified Marylanders to participate in the Community Solar Grant Program.
The program makes solar power accessible to renters or those who cannot install solar panels on their own properties.
The Maryland Energy Administration is prioritizing projects sited on landfills or brownfields in its mission to turn former wastelands into renewable energy production hubs. Approximately $12 million of funding will be allocated to such projects.
Half the energy will be provided free of charge to low-income households that are designated by the Maryland Department of Human Services. The other half will be subscribed to low-income households with a utility residential rate, discounted at 25%.
Projects that are not built on landfills or brownfields require 15% of the site’s electricity to go to low-income subscribers and provide a minimum savings of 12%, with the actual savings exceeding 20% for many customers.
“The reason we are so focused on the issue of energy affordability is because we hear from our constituents about it every day,” said Gov. Moore, in a statement. “That’s why we’re taking this important step forward to make energy more sustainable and bring prices down in communities across the state. And as we continue in this work, we’re making sure to leave no one behind.”
Applications for the program are open until Tuesday, December 23.
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