The USDA has approved funding for $46 million in loans for energy efficiency projects in Vermont.
The Vermont Energy Investment Corporation will administer the low cost, flexible term financing to Vermont businesses and homeowners.
Tom Vilsack, the secretary of the Department of Agriculture, made the announcement on Friday in Burlington. The VEIC application is the largest Rural Utility Service Energy Efficiency and Conservation Loan Program approved to date, according to a press release.
“This loan will reduce barriers to energy investments by lowering the upfront costs, spreading these costs over 20 years, and by making financing more available,” Vilsack said. “It also will help residential, commercial, agricultural and industrial consumers in rural Vermont reduce energy use and meet state and national energy goals.”
The Vermont Energy Investment Corporation operates Efficiency Vermont, a regulated energy efficiency utility.
In a statement, Scott Johnstone, executive director of VEIC, said the nonprofit company has the “experience, technical expertise and partnerships to leverage this loan capital, helping Vermonters access low-cost capital to complete clean energy projects.”
“We are especially excited by the potential of this program to help more low- and middle-income customers access affordable financing to save money,” Johnstone said.
The loan program must be approved by the Vermont Public Service Board and is slated to go into effect in the second quarter of 2016.
Examples of projects that might be financed through the loan program include:
Rooftop solar installations
Residential and commercial energy efficiency improvements
Health and safety improvements — such as the removal of asbestos and knob and tube wiring — as part of energy efficiency and renewable projects
Conversion from fossil fuel heat to cold climate electric heat pumps, wood pellet systems or efficient wood stoves
Electric vehicle charging stations.
