U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez and Senator Chuck Schumer
Dec. 16, 2024 By Shane O’Brien
U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez and Senator Chuck Schumer have secured up to $365 million in funding for renewable energy systems in Puerto Rico as part of a Department of Energy (DOE) program to provide cheaper and cleaner power to communities on the island.
Velázquez and Schumer issued a joint statement Friday, Dec. 12, announcing that they had secured $365 million in funding for the DOE’s new program for renewable energy in Puerto Rico, investing up to $190 million in solar panels and battery systems in common areas of public housing and privately owned, federally subsidized multi-family housing.
The program will additionally invest up to $175 million in solar and battery storage systems at federally qualified healthcare facilities in underserved and vulnerable communities.
The $365 million investment is part of DOE’s new Programa de Comunidades Resilientes (Program of Resilient Communities), which is funded by the Puerto Rico Energy Resilience Fund (PR-ERF).
The fund, first announced by U.S. Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva of Arizona, will provide over $1 billion to increase energy efficiency on the island.
Any teams chosen for award negotiations for the latest $365 million investment will already have a strong presence in Puerto Rico and will work with local stakeholders to implement projects.
Velázquez, the first Puerto Rican woman to serve in Congress, said Puerto Rican families have struggled with some of the highest energy rates in the US and unreliable power grids for too long, stating that the latest investment in renewable energy will help provide Puerto Rican families with access to more affordable energy.
“Today’s $365 million investment in renewables on the island will help bring cleaner, less expensive, and more reliable energy to the communities that need it most,” Velázquez said in a statement Friday.
Velázquez added that the investment will also improve access to healthcare in Puerto Rico and create new jobs.
Schumer described the investment as a “giant step in the right direction” to provide Puerto Rico with clean and renewable energy via state-of-the-art solar and battery storage systems. Schumer said millions of Puerto Ricans were left without power when hurricanes hammered the island, highlighting the need to build a more efficient, cleaner and cheaper energy system.
He said the investment will provide multi-family housing and healthcare facilities with resilient solar and battery storage at a time when blackouts continue to affect communities in Puerto Rico.
“I will continue to champion investments in Puerto Rico’s energy infrastructure so that Puerto Ricans can have a resilient, clean, and efficient power grid,” Schumer said in a statement.
Featured Events
