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Griggs Road Will Use Grant to Take Advantage of Solar Technology
COLUMBIA,S.C. – Five South Carolina schools will soon begin generating electricity usingroof-top solar panels as a result of beingprovided financial assistance from Palmetto Clean Energy (PaCE), a SouthCarolina nonprofit that promotes renewable energy resources.
PaCE’sSolar Matching Grant Pilot program targeted K-12 schools in South Carolina. The$250,000 program will cover 50 percent of a school’s rooftop solar installation– up to $50,000. K-12 schools and not-for-profit 501(c)3 educationalinstitutions in South Carolina were eligible.
Theprogram is aimed at enabling more schools and educational institutions to takeadvantage of solar technologies by assisting with upfront installation costs .
Thefive applicants selected for funding are:
· Bluffton High School (Beaufort County School District)
· Dixie Plantation Educational Holdings LLC, Environmental ResearchStations at Dixie Plantation (College of Charleston)
· Griggs Road Elementary School (Clover School District)
· Roper Mountain Science Center (Greenville County School District)
· Whale Branch Early College High School (Beaufort County SchoolDistrict)
“Byhelping with initial installation costs, these grants enable more educationalinstitutions to take advantage of solar technologies,” said Bob Long, chairmanof the PaCE board of directors. “These matching grants can be used to coverhalf the cost of installing solar panels.”
Thepilot program is funded by a previously announced contribution by Duke Energy.The contribution was part of a settlement agreement reached with the EnvironmentalDefense Fund, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy and the South Carolina Coastal ConservationLeague during the Duke Energy-ProgressEnergy merger.
Installationwork at the schools will likely begin in early 2014. Additional grants will beavailable in the spring of 2014. Information will be posted on the PaCE website when the application process opens.
AboutPaCE
Palmetto Clean Energy is a nonprofit renewable energy program designed toencourage the development of renewable energy resources that improve theenvironment through reduced greenhouse-gas emissions. PaCE is a collaborativeeffort among Duke Energy Carolinas, Duke Energy Progress and South CarolinaElectric & Gas, working with the South Carolina Energy Office and the SouthCarolina Office of Regulatory Staff to provide more than 1.2 million SouthCarolina customers with an opportunity to support green energy initiativesthrough tax- deductible contributions. These contributions are collected by theutilities and distributed to PaCE in their entirety. For more information or tomake a contribution to PaCE, visit www.palmettocleanenergy.org.