Alternative Energy Company Grants

Global warming, climate change and fossil fuels are all related. The United States is taking the lead in decreasing carbon dioxide emissions (CO2e) by pouring money into alternative energy projects. Oil prices may be low, China may not decrease CO2 emissions enough, but current U.S. policy is to develop clean energy sources as quickly as possible. A lot of federal and state funding is available. If you have an alternative energy company, the keys to funding your projects are opportunities from and relationships with funding agencies.

Alternative Energy Opportunities

• The economic stimulus bill and annual budget both allocated large sums of money to the environment, specifically alternative energy. Many federal and state agencies are funding clean energy projects and creating jobs. The Environmental Protection Agency is going to fund a project to reduce methane emissions from landfills by using it to generate electricity. The National Science Foundation is going to fund projects that use biomass energy for economically important manufacturing. Metropolitan planning agencies, in cooperation with local transit authorities, are going to fund alternative fuel and vehicle projects. State Energy Offices are funding projects that create jobs in the alternative energy sector.

Funding Announcements

• There are many opportunities out there. Where do you find out about them early enough so you can get your name in front of the right people? The Internet is the place to start. Grants.gov is very popular, but the Federal Register, the official publication of the federal government, provides the earliest announcement of funds available. The Federal Register publishes rules, proposed rules and notices of all federal agencies and organizations, including funding opportunities, on a daily basis. Most agencies will announce funding opportunities two to three months in advance of the proposal due date.

Build Relationships

• Learning of a grant opportunity early allows you to begin to build relationships with the funding agency. It also allows you to tailor your alternative energy project to meet the needs of the agency before you actually have to prepare the grant proposal. For example, your company may have the technology to convert methane into electricity but you do not have experience with landfills. Perhaps you could build relationships with municipal landfills in order to get the necessary experience and better compete for funds.

  Many grants require partnerships with government agencies or non-profit organizations. It's a good idea to continually build these types of relationships especially for alternative energy projects which may eventually service the highly regulated, but locally important, utility industry.

Target Local Opportunities

• The Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Program has tasked the Clean Cities program with conveying grant opportunities to the public. Grant making and contract awards can get bogged down with federal government red tape. Working with Clean Cities directly streamlines the process. Contact your local representatives of any energy agency, whether there are current grants available or not. There is a lot of money available for alternative energy projects, and you are likely to hear about opportunities first from your local contacts before they even get printed in the Federal Register.