The Department of Energy has announced the winners of its $12 million
dollar
SunShot Rooftop Challenge, and great news--some of the money will
be used to improve our access to solar power here in the Twin Cities.
The DOE saw two major hurdles to development of small rooftop solar systems for homes and small businesses:
* red tape encountered during the process of getting permits and connecting to the electrical grid; and
* financing.
The
Sunshot Rooftop Challenge was held to inspire the entities in power--state and local government officials, utilities, and regulatory agencies--to come together as a team and figure out a way to make it less of a headache for regular people to move through the system.
The Minnesota team was headed by the Department of Commerce, in partnership with the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul and the local clean energy policy nonprofit
Fresh Energy. Their efforts have brought Minnesota $263,169 to help simplify all our paths from green-leaning homeowners to energy-independent Sun Gods!
A full list of all 22 teams awarded money from the challenge can be found
here.