Biden Harris Administration Announces $9 Million to Bolster Clean Domestic Manufacturing and Support Small and Medium Sized Businesses

Funding from the Investing in America Agenda Would Support 47 New Small-and Medium-Sized Manufacturers to Improve Energy Efficiency, Lower Costs, Increase Productivity, and Reduce Industrial Emissions

WASHINGTON, D.C. - As part of President Biden's Investing in America agenda, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced an additional $9 million investment in the Industrial Training and Assessment Centers (ITAC) Implementation Grants program. This funding would support 47 small- and medium-sized manufacturers (SMMs) across the country to implement a wide variety of energy and efficiency projects, including installing onsite solar and heat pumps, improving lighting and heating, and electrifying industrial equipment and fleets. Supported by President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and administered by DOE's Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC), the ITAC Implementation Grants program provides up to $300,000 to manufacturers to implement recommendations made by DOE and other qualified energy assessments. The ITAC program supports the Biden-Harris Administration's efforts to lower energy costs, improve efficiency, and reduce harmful emissions, all while supporting small businesses strengthening our domestic manufacturing sector.

"The Biden-Harris Administration is powering a clean energy transition, delivering new manufacturing opportunities throughout the nation," said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. "DOE is ensuring American leadership in advanced manufacturing by training the next generation of clean energy workers and mitigating upfront costs for small-and-medium sized manufacturers to increase their energy efficiency."

The grants announced today will help SMMs, which comprise more than 90% of the nation's manufacturing base, leverage federal support and local expertise to identify cost-effective opportunities to improve energy efficiency, increase competitiveness, and reduce emissions. The 47 selections are expected to abate more than 28,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year, equivalent to about 115 small businesses' annual emissions. To continue supporting U.S. manufacturers, DOE also announced that the ITAC program is open for additional applications, and announced 11 additional entities to provide and coordinate energy assessments across 8 states, greatly expanding access to the ITAC implementation grants.

Today's announcements reinforce the Biden-Harris Administration's efforts to revitalize American manufacturing, create good-paying union jobs in industrial communities, support small businesses and entrepreneurs, lower energy costs and strengthen our energy security, advance energy and environmental justice through the President's Justice40 Initiative, and meet the President's ambitious goal of a net-zero economy by 2050.

For more than four decades, the ITAC program, managed by MESC, has provided more than 21,000 energy assessments at SMMs and typically identify more than $150,000 in potential annual energy savings opportunities for every manufacturer.

This $9 million investment will leverage an additional $14 million in industry investment to support the 47 grants. Fifteen projects will benefit disadvantaged communities by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and non-greenhouse gas co-pollutants and supporting local jobs, underscoring President Biden and Vice President Harris' commitment to ensure that the communities most in need are able to benefit from the transition to a clean energy future. This program supports DOE's work towards advancing the President's Justice40 Initiative, which set a goal to deliver 40% of the overall benefits of certain federal investments to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.

Under the Biden-Harris Administration, 162 businesses across 36 states have been selected to receive a combined total of more than $26 million through the ITAC program to implement energy saving improvements, matched by more than $50 million in industry investment. These improvements are expected to save $15.6 million in annual energy savings and abate about 55,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.

Learn more about the grants here.

Selection for award negotiations is not a commitment by DOE to issue an award or provide funding. Before funding is issued, DOE will ensure compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and DOE, its partnership intermediary ENERGYWERX, and the applicants will undergo a negotiation process. DOE may cancel negotiations and rescind the selection for any reason during that time. DOE is working with ENERGYWERX in a collaboration made possible through an innovative Partnership Intermediary Agreement (PIA) set up by the DOE's Office of Technology Transitions. This agreement enables ENERGYWERX to broaden DOE's engagement with innovative organizations and non-traditional partners, facilitating the rapid development, scaling, and deployment of clean energy solutions.

SMMs can learn more about the program, the application process here and can register to attend "office-hours" on September 19, 2024, from 2:00-3:00 pm EST.

Learn more about the MESC mission to strengthen and secure manufacturing and energy supply chains needed to modernize the nation's energy infrastructure and support a clean and equitable energy transition.

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