New England Coalition to receive $450 million EPA Climate Pollution Reduction Grant

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that a five-state New England coalition that includes New Hampshire will be awarded $450 million in grant funding to support the New England Heat Pump Accelerator (Accelerator).

What is a heat pump?

A heat pump is a refrigerant based technology that uses electricity for both heating or cooling spaces that provides an energy efficient alternative to traditional furnaces and air conditioners. This grant program will help many New Hampshire families to defray the high upfront costs of utilizing a heat pump system in single-family and multifamily residential buildings, allowing them to benefit from saving money on their monthly or seasonal bills.

Who is part of the New England Coalition?

The five-state coalition is being led by Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and includes the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES), the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources, the Maine Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future, and the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources.

What is the grant for?

Of the nearly 300 applications that EPA received, the New England coalition application was among only 25 applications selected for funding through a rigorous grant competition. The award, the only one selected within New England, will allow the five-state coalition to rapidly foster adoption of heat pump technologies. The Accelerator will work with manufacturers, distributors and contractors to increase the availability of heat pumps, ensure quality installation, and reduce costs for residents. The coalition anticipates that the Accelerator will advance the adoption of cold-climate air-source heat pumps, heat pump water heaters, and ground source heat pumps in more than 500,000 single-family and multifamily residential buildings in New England.

How will the grant work?

The Accelerator combines three program hubs: market, innovation and resources. Together, these hubs work to spur heat pump adoption solutions to address specific barriers that low- and moderate-income households and underserved communities face in adopting heat pumps, and share data and educational resources to drive rapid, aligned progress across the New England region. At least 40% of the benefits of Accelerator funding will be directed to low- and moderate-income households and underserved communities.