Maryland Energy Administration Fall Agency Update

The Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) is in the midst of another busy season. We are prepping the 2019 Maryland Strategic Energy Investment Fund (SEIF) report which describes the expenditures of the SEIF including grants awarded, energy savings estimated, and programs, projects and activities. MEA is the SEIF administrator and the annual report demonstrates achievements being made towards promoting affordable, reliable, and cleaner energy for the benefit of all Marylanders. Click here to see how the 2018 SEIF helped Marylanders or here to download the full 166 page report.

Remember that hurricane season does not end till November 30, 2019 so it is best to keep your storm prep and power outage gear and info current. For help making a storm supply check list or contacts for your local utility, click here. During any major storm in Maryland, MEA sends trained team members to assist the Maryland Emergency Management Agency and acts as a liaison to the utility and energy industries to facilitate a coordinated restoration of electric, gas, and commodity fuels, as well as energy delivery systems in affected areas.

Seasonal Highlights

Lt. Governor Boyd K. Rutherford was on hand last week to help announce the partnership between Tradepoint Atlantic and Ørsted to develop the first-ever offshore wind energy center in Maryland .MEA Director Mary Beth Tung and several team members signed the first piling that will be placed for this project. MEA has grants to help train workers and support businesses in the offshore wind industry and grantees will be announced soon.

Maryland is once again in the Top Ten for national energy efficiency rankings put out by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE). ACEEE began their national energy scorecard listing in 2006 and Maryland has been in the Top Ten listing for the past nine consecutive years. Maryland is frequently listed as a state example of proactive and reliable energy code adoption. Maryland law requires that the State adopt the International Building Code, including the International Energy Conservation Code, as part of the Maryland Building Performance Standards.  To read more about the 2019 ACEEE scorecard rankings and details about Maryland’s performance, click here.

Maryland Energy Administration Chief of Staff, Chris Rice and R.S. Automotive Inc. owner Depeswar Doley

Maryland made national news when the country’s first fully converted gas-to-electric charging station opened in Takoma Park. The EV refueling station, jointly funded by the Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) and Electric Vehicle Institute (EVI), is located along the Maryland/Washington, D.C. border at RS Automotive Inc. Relive the day via our blog or check out some stories from CNN, Fox Business News, Washington Post and NBC Channel 4.

Located in Cumberland Maryland, AES Warrior Run CFB Coal Technology is 205 megawatt co-generation plant that began commercial operations in 2000. In addition to electric power, the plant also produces food-grade carbon dioxide. The MEA team visited Warrior Run on October 10, 2019 to tour their facilities.

The city of Cumberland is Maryland Smart Energy Community (MSEC). Maryland Energy Administration Director, Mary Beth Tung and Chief of Staff, Chris Rice, Director of Government Affairs, Dr. Ryan Opsal and Energy Program Manager Richard Mallory met with Cumberland city officials on October 11, 2019. Read more about the energy upgrades that Cumberland had done here.  The fiscal year (FY) 2020 cycle of MSEC is now open and accepting applications, click here to learn more.

MEA held a Strategic Energy Investment Advisory Board listening session on October 11th at Allegany College in Cumberland. The listening session was live streamed on the MEA Facebook page. Additional listening sessions will be held around the state including: Wednesday, October 30 from 11:15 AM – 1:00 PM EDT College of Southern Maryland Conference Center (BI104), 8730 Mitchell Rd, La Plata, MD 20646, the Eastern Maryland SEIF Listening Session – TBD, Thursday, November 21, 2019 from 1:15 PM – 3:00 PM EST Smart Energy Hall at BGE headquarters, 110 West Fayette St., Baltimore, MD 21201, Strategic Energy Investment Official Board Meeting – 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM EST Aries Conference Room at the Maryland Department of the Environment, 1800 Washington Blvd, Baltimore, MD 21230 at Maryland Energy Administration Headquarters. To keep up to date on MEA events, visit our online calendar.

Meals on Wheels of Central Maryland is one of the oldest nonprofit, home-delivered meal programs in the country, serving more than 1.2 million meals annually to nearly 3,000 clients. Team members from the MEA were honored to volunteer in the kitchen for meal prep with the Meals on Wheels team. Read more about Meals on Wheels here.

Assistant Director of Energy Programs Jenn Gallicchio  is celebrating 10 years at MEA.  Jenn oversees so much of MEA’s program related activities it is challenging to list all of her duties. She is a one-stop energy info data center, helping all MEA energy program managers with their projects. One annual project that Jenn oversees is the compilation of the Strategic Energy Investment Fund (SEIF) report which details grant awards; estimated energy savings; and programs, projects and activities conducted at MEA over the past years.

Caitlin Madera is the Energy Program Manager for the Maryland Commercial Industrial & Agriculture program and the October Employee of the Month. Previously, Cait served as the program manager for the Maryland Smart Energy Community program. Earlier this year, she was featured in Jmore Magazine for her work in both energy and with the Maryland Emergency Management Agency, during storm response, see her segment here.

Jessica Wakefield is this quarter’s recipient of the MEA Director’s Award. Jessica is MEA’s Fiscal Officer and returned to MEA last year after having spent a few years away in Texas. Jessica’s work in preparing the MEA budget has been nothing short of phenomenal in a time where a new statewide accounting software was introduced.  The MEA Director’s Award is given four times a year and recipients are eligible for the Employee of the Year Award. To view award winners from past years, click here.

MEA is helping municipalities easily transition to LED streetlights with a new and more comprehensive assistance for municipal streetlighting upgrades. This program is sponsored by a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). MEA is now leading a two-state initiative. Read more here

Programs Programs Programs

FY 20 Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Program (AFIP) is open and accepting applications till December 31, 2019. FY 20 AFIP contains new terms and conditions, as a result of the Chapter 757 of the 2019 Acts of the General Assembly of Maryland (Clean Energy Jobs Act). Please consult the program guidelines for additional information.

Clean Energy Rebate Program, formerly the Clean Energy Grant Program is now open and accepting applications.  This rebate program serves both the residential and a commercial markets. Learn more here.

FY 20  Solar Parking Canopy grant is open and accepting applications till September 7, 2018. The Solar Canopy Grant Program combines Maryland’s Renewable Portfolio Standard goal for solar with the State’s ongoing support of electric vehicle infrastructure. Read about the new solar canopy at Fitzgerald Auto Mall, funded in part from MEA.

Two FY 20 offshore wind grants are now open: Maryland Offshore Wind Capex program with allotted funds of $1.6 million dollars and Maryland Offshore Wind Workforce Training Program with allotted funds of $1.2 million dollars. Application deadline for both programs: October 1, 2019. Read more here.

FY 20 Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE) Rebate Program 2.0 applications are currently being processed for payment. Waitlisted FY19 applications will be processed in the order they were received. Via this program residents, governments and businesses can acquire a state rebate for purchasing and installing an electric vehicle charging equipment. Learn more here.

A total of $1.25 million in funding available for Commercial Industrial & Agricultural energy upgrade projects. Application deadline is Oct. 15 2019. For a full list of eligible projects and your applications, click here. To learn more about the stages of the grant, click here.

Data Center Energy Efficiency Grant Program (DCEEG) is the first of its kind program in the U.S., from a state energy office. This grant advocates for energy efficiency measures specifically for data centers that use  100 – 200 x more energy than a standard office. The FY 20 grant application deadline is January 10, 2020. DCEEG was a finalist for the Global Data Center Awards last December. Maryland’s data center program was one of six total U.S. finalists and the only program nominated from a U.S. state energy office.

The FY  2020 Jane E. Lawton Conservation Loan Program  launches today Thursday August 1, 2019, click here. This program continues to support Maryland non-profit organizations, local governments, and businesses. This year, MEA introduced a bill (House Bill 170)  during the 2019 legislative session which allows State Agencies to apply for the Lawton Loan Program. By accommodating State agencies, the revised Lawton format replaces the State Agency Loan Program.

Applications for the FY 19 Maryland Energy Storage Income Tax Credit Program are still being accepted until January 15, 2020. Maryland made national news in 2017 as the first state in the country to pass a bill allowing taxpayers to claim an income tax credit on energy storage devices. This program encourage the deployment of energy storage systems. Energy storage devices function as battery back-ups, which can be used in conjunction with or without renewable energy sources.

The FY 2020 Maryland Smart Energy Community grant is open and accepting applications till December 20, 2019.

Applications for the FY20 Clean Energy Communities Low-to-Moderate Income Grant Program are due November 15, 2019.