EGLE announces Solar for Savings grants for eight projects statewide

Eight awardees from all corners of Michigan will become the first MI Solar for All pilots, awarded in round one of the Solar for Savings (SFS) grants opportunity. SFS is the first of a series of MI Healthy Climate Challenge (MHC Challenge) grant competitions to drive clean energy deployment and unlock additional investment across Michigan. 

The Office of Climate and Energy (OCE) in the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) announced the awards today. Together, they tentatively total about $7.9 million – a number subject to change as the OCE works with awardees in the coming weeks to finalize grant agreements.  

Projects are focused on deploying solar projects to help low-income participants save money by reducing energy costs or providing other benefits, improving energy resilience, and supporting Michigan’s energy independence through greater solar access across Michigan communities. Grants were awarded in two categories: 

Residential rooftop solar projects 

• Hope Village Revitalization, Wayne County: Retrofit 10 homes in Detroit and Highland Park with rooftop solar, battery storage, weatherization and high efficiency, dual fuel, cold climate heat pumps, with a goal of scaling the program to 100 homes. 

• Southwest Housing Solutions Corp., doing business as MiSide Housing, Oakland County: Install solar on a 60-unit multifamily building serving low-income vulnerable seniors, including formerly homeless seniors, with solar benefits to fund part of the time for a service coordinator position for residents. 

• Superior Watershed Partnership, covering all Upper Peninsula counties: Install solar at 15 households. At least five households will receive energy storage. Critical care customers with medical devices dependent on electricity will be prioritized. Installations will provide electricity cost reductions to low-income households and, in cases with energy storage, added resiliency. 

Residential-serving community solar projects 

• City of Benton Harbor, Berrien County: Install solar at city facilities. Benefits will be provided to eligible low-income beneficiaries on city water bills. 

• Hillsdale Board of Public Utilities, Hillsdale County: Install ground-mounted solar at a municipal airport with pollinator-friendly plants. Low-income benefits will be provided on utility bills. 

• Inter-Tribal Council of Michigan, Chippewa County: Install solar and storage at 12 residential homes and a community building to support resiliency, provided as electric bill offset to 12 households or through community programs focused on energy assistance or food security. 

• Lowell Light & Power, Kent County: Install solar canopies over the main parking lot at Stoney Lakeside Park for high visibility and community education with benefits provided on utility bills in an opt-out program. 

• North End Woodward Community Coalition, Wayne County: Expand the Solar Neighbors initiative to install solar, owned by a community trust. 

The proposals serve as pilot projects laying the groundwork for the broader MI Solar for All (MI SFA) program, a federally funded initiative to bring solar energy to low-income households and communities statewide.  

MI SFA will provide direct financial assistance for rooftop solar, community solar, energy storage, and upgrades, as well as workforce development, community outreach, and technical assistance opportunities. Participating households are expected to receive a benefit equivalent to an average 20% reduction on their electricity bill. 

Michigan received $156 million for MI SFA through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s $7 billion Solar for All competition. 

The state initially allocated $8.875 million for Solar for Savings but now has approved up to $20 million more to fund pilot projects that will broaden the knowledge base for MI SFA. Applications have closed for the first two rounds of Solar for Savings but remain open until 5 p.m. Sept. 30 for the third round.  Awards will be made first-come, first-served, and each round’s applicants will remain eligible in subsequent rounds. To learn more and apply, visit Michigan.gov/MHCChallenge.