The
folowing list of resources, grants, funding, and incentives provide
financial assistance to support alternative fuel and advanced
transportation technology in North Carolina. Individuals, private
businesses, and public entities should utilize these opportunities to
reduce our dependence on petroleum and improve our air quality.
Area of Interest 1 (DE-PS26-09NT01236-01) Refueling
Infrastructure for Alternative Fuels Under this Area of Interest, the
Department is seeking applications for cost-shared projects that expand
alternative refueling and blending infrastructure for alternative fuels
to help decrease the nations dependence on petroleum by helping to
grow the alternative fuels market. Projects are sought that will
contribute to a sustainable alternative fuel market with a potential
for future growth in the absence of additional Federal funding. This
area of interest Includes Subtopic areas include: (1A) Biofuel Retail
Infrastructure Program (1B) Terminal Blending and Other Alternative
Fuel Infrastructure Programs.
Clean
Fuel Advanced Technology (CFAT) Funding
Approximately $1.5 million in funding will be
available through the NC Solar Center for a program supported by the NC
Department of Transportation, NC Division of Air Quality and the State
Energy Office. Awards will be provided for a portion of the
incremental costs of alternative fuel vehicles, refueling
infrastructure and other projects that reduce mobile emissions in
national ambient air quality non-attainment and maintenance counties in
NC.
(CARE) is a competitive grant program that
offers an innovative way for a community to organize and take action to
reduce toxic pollution in its local environment. Through CARE, a
community creates a partnership that implements solutions to reduce
releases of toxic pollutants and minimize people's exposure to
them. By providing financial and technical assistance, EPA helps
CARE communities get on the path to a renewed environment. http://www.epa.gov/care/
DSIRE Incentives Database
The Database of
State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency (DSIRE) is a free, comprehensive,
user-friendly source of information on state, local, utility and
selected federal incentives that promote renewable energy and energy
efficiency. With a single click of the mouse, DSIRE provides users with
a list of renewable-energy incentives and energy-efficiency incentives
available in any U.S. state. Visit the North
Carolina incentives section.
Incentives
for Alternative Fuel and Advanced Technology Vehicles
The Federal Tax Credits for Purchase of
Hybrids is available from 2006-2010 for hybrid electric vehicles and
vehicles with cleaner burning diesel engines (advanced lean-burn
engines). Consumers can earn a tax credit of up to $3,400 for light
duty vehicles (under 8,500 lbs) if they are one of the first 60,000
sold by that particular automaker after which the credit is reduced and
phased out. Recently the IRS published a guide for manufacturers to
certify eligible hybrid vehicles (see the Tax Incentives Assistance
Project or American
Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy sites for further info) and
the Diesel
Technology Forum has information for the advanced lean-burn
technology.
Also, the Alternative Fuel Vehicle Tax
Credits, available from 2006-2010, provide a 50% tax credit based on
the incremental cost of a new, dedicated alternative fuel vehicle, plus
an additional 30 percent if the vehicle meets certain tighter emission
standards. The amount of the credit is limited ranging from $2,500 to
$32,000 depending on the size of the vehicle.
The Biodiesel Blenders Tax Credit available
from 2005-2008 provides a $1.00 per gallon tax credit for
“agri-biodiesel” (first use vegetable oils and animal fats - including
palm and fish oil) and a $.50 per gallon tax credit for biodiesel
produced from recycled oils and animal fats is available for biodiesel
blended with petroleum diesel. A tax refund of 51 cents per gallon on
each gallon of ethanol blended with gasoline to be paid within 20-28
days of blending gasoline with ethanol is established with the
Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit (VEETC) available from 2005-2010.
The 2005 Energy Bill included a Refueling
Infrastructure Tax Credit of 30% (up to $30,000 – increased to $50,000
by the 2005 Transportation Bill) for refueling equipment for E85
ethanol, compressed natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, hydrogen, and
biodiesel blends containing at least 20 percent biodiesel. A tax credit
is available for facilities that dispense biodiesel and
ethanol/gasoline mixtures consisting of at least 70% ethanol is
available under the NC Tax Credit for Alternative Fuel Refueling
Infrastructure.
In addition, the NC Alternative Fuel Tax
Exemption states that the retail sale, use, storage or consumption of
alternative fuels is exempt from the state's sales and use tax which is
applied to conventional off road fuel sales and is 7% of the sales
price. Also the North CarolinaSoybean Producers Association has
established the Biodiesel Distributor Rebate Program for new dealers
and distributors are eligible for a rebate on the first 250 of 500
gallons of soy biodiesel (B100) purchased as well as 1/2 of the cost of
equipment with a maximum of $2,500 per soy biodiesel dealer under the
Biodiesel Equipment Enhancement Rebate.
Alternative fuel producers have the
opportunity to utilize the Renewable Energy Property Tax Credit of 35%
up to $250,000 for the construction, purchase, or lease of a renewable
energy property. A 25% tax credit is available to producers that
construct and place in service a commercial facility for processing
renewable fuel under the 2004 NC House Bill 1636, Tax Credit for
Alternative Fuel Production Facilities. In addition, there are
Commodity Corporation Credits for the production of ethanol and
biodiesel.
The expanded production of alternative fuels
will be supported by the renewable fuel standard (RFS) that requires
transportation fuel sold in the United States to contain a total of 4
billion gallons of biofuels in 2006, increasing to 7.5 billion gallons
in 2012, and the phase out in the use of MTBE for Gasoline as outlined
in NC House Bill 1336.
Annual solicitations are accepted for NC
Department of Environment and Natural Resources' Division of Air
Quality's Mobile Source Emissions Reduction Grant.
The purpose of the Mobile Source Emissions
Reduction Grants is to achieve actual reductions from on- and off- road
mobile source related emissions in North Carolina and to assist the
State in maintaining the National Air Quality Standards for primarily
ozone and carbon monoxide.
Annual application period is Oct 1-Dec 31.
Awards are announced in March of the following year.
The
North Carolina Green Business Fund (Hurry!-pre-proposal
due Jan 9, 2009) is a grant award program
authorized by the N.C. General Assembly during the 2006-2007
legislative session. Under this program, grant awards may be made
to North Carolina organizations in support of competitively assessed
projects focused on the following three priority areas:
1)
Development of the biofuels industry in the State. Grants made in
this category may target projects that maximize the development,
production, distribution, retail infrastructure, and consumer purchase
of biofuels and workforce development in these areas.
2)
Development of the green building industry in the State, and
3)
Attraction and leverage of private sector investments and
entrepreneurial growth in environmentally conscious clean technology
and renewable energy products and businesses.
The
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) provides
$156 million in new funding to support the implementation of verified
and certified diesel emission reduction technologies. Under this
competitive grant program, funding must be used to achieve significant
reductions in diesel emissions in terms of tons of pollution produced
and diesel emissions exposure (particularly from fleets operating in
areas designated by the Administrator as poor air quality areas), and
the project must demonstrate the ability to maximize job preservation
and creation. This program is referred to as Recovery Act Funding
for National Clean Diesel Funding Assistance Program.
The Recovery Act Funding for National Clean Diesel Funding
Assistance Program will be awarded on a competitive basis to support
diesel emission reduction programs which maximize job creation and
preservation. Although this is a National competition, applicants must
submit applications to the EPA Region in which the project will take
place. Assistance agreements funded under this announcement will be
evaluated and awarded by each of EPA’s ten Regional Offices.
Southeast
Diesel Collaborative - EPA Diesel Program
In conjunction with the Southeast Diesel Collaborative, the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing the
availability
of funding assistance for projects to reduce diesel emissions
from
diesel powered vehicles in EPA Region 4 states of Alabama,
Florida,
Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina
and/or
Tennessee. This includes both on-road and off-road
applications.
Proposals need to describe projects which will demonstrate
effective
emission control technologies and strategies or methods or
approaches
to reducing diesel emissions as part of the Southeast Diesel
Collaborative.
The total estimated funding for this competitive opportunity is
approximately $3.6 million. EPA Region 4 anticipates awarding
5-10
assistance agreements ranging from $250,000 to $750,000 in
Federal
funding, subject to the availability of funds and quality of
proposals
received. However, EPA Region 4 reserves the option to fund a
project
at an amount lower than $250,000 if the proposed project involves
retrofitting or upgrading an applicant's entire fleet.
Projects may include, but are not limited to, a variety of diesel
emissions reductions solutions such as retrofit technology, idle
reduction technology or strategies, vehicle replacement, engine
replacement (repowers) and engine upgrades, or use of cleaner
burning
fuel. The closing date and time for receipt of proposals is 5:00
PM
(Eastern) on June 12, 2008.
Proposals should be submitted via
www.grants.gov and must be received by this date and time.
The
solicitation request can be found at: http://www.epa.gov/region4/air/mobile/SEDC-RFP%20FY0809.pdf
US
DOE listing of Incentives and Laws Concerning Alternative Fuels
The DOE's Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Energy Office website provides the latest developments and news for
alternative fuels along with a listing of incentives and laws that
apply to the technology. Check on Federal
Incentives and Laws and North
Carolina Incentives and Laws to find a complete up-to-date
listing.
