Colorado receives DOE renewable energy grant

DENVER – Colorado is one of 15 states receiving about $6.6 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Energy to develop renewable energy policies and projects.

Colorado will receive a $397,700 grant to develop technical, financial and policy frameworks to expedite the construction of an additional 1,000 megawatts of renewable resource capacity onto the state’s electricity grid, according to the office of Gov. Bill Ritter.

One thousand megawatts is enough to provide power to about 330,000 homes.

“This DOE grant is another important step forward for Colorado’s New Energy Economy,” Ritter said in a statement. “It will help us connect Colorado’s abundant solar and wind resources to our transmission grid.”

Tom Plant, director of the governor’s energy office, said the state will “work closely with our utility, industry, research institutions and community partners to identify approaches to expedite a full build-out of Colorado’s renewable energy capacity.”

According to the DOE in its award announcement, Colorado will be expected to develop a report addressing key barriers and incentives for building transmission capacity for renewable energy, including a set of policy recommendations to address permitting, siting and related environmental issues.

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