In March 2023, the Wisconsin Public Service Commission (PSC) Office of Energy Innovation awarded nearly $10 million in funding through their Energy Innovation Grant program (EIGP) to 32 projects advancing renewable energy and energy storage, energy efficiency and demand response, and comprehensive energy planning. The PSC received 135 applications this year that requested more than $42 million in funding. The grant recipients received full or partially funded awards ranging from $20,000 to $1 million, six of which will support microgrid implementation or feasibility planning. For the 2022 program year, the strategic program objectives were to invest in the adoption of innovative clean energy, efficiency, and preparedness technologies while expanding access to these technologies for Wisconsin communities.
The program welcomes applications from municipalities, educational institutions, hospitals, manufacturers, utilities, and Tribes, and as of the 2022 program year, electric cooperatives and nonprofits. Since program inception in 2018, the EIGP program has awarded 141 projects totaling $32 million to date and is federally funded through the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). A press release on this year’s grant awards can be found here.