Not Just Farmers Benefiting from Rural Energy Grants Next REAP Grant Application Deadline March 31

It’s not a stretch to say every small business is looking for ways to save money. Some are harvesting savings via sunshine: adding the ability to produce their own solar energy.  The Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) offers a generous way to support solar for rural, small businesses by providing grants and financing options for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects. As you might expect, many agricultural producers have taken advantage of this USDA grant program. 

“Just been here over a hundred years,” said Shannon Miller of Lick Skillet Farm in New Market, Tennessee. “My husband’s family.” The family farm has diversified to a variety of farm foods they market online. That includes grass-finished beef and lamb, pastured heritage pork, chicken, eggs and turkeys. The family continues supporting the local economy and harvesting sunshine right on the farm with solar plus battery storage. Farm families like the Millers are using the Renewable Energy for America Program to add a layer of dependable, renewable energy from the sun.   

But the REAP grant is not only for farmers.  (Video link here) 

REAP is also available to rural small business owners throughout the region, providing better access to utility savings and the peace of mind that clean, distributed energy brings.  Solar Alliance is proud to be a part of it. “Saves them money by generating their own power and allows them to leverage grants and federal incentives that are available to them now,” said Solar Alliance Southeast General Manager Jon Hamilton. 

“Projects like these have a direct impact on a business owner’s bottom line,” added Hamilton. USDA REAP grants are covering as much as half the cost of an eligible energy project. Hamilton said, “The REAP grant is the best program for small businesses in our area.”   

Eric Levin’s Market Street Properties is bringing solar energy to Oak Ridge, Tennessee, where he owns an office building that he leases out.    ”I’m not a farmer,” said Eric Levin. “But, I’m a small business owner.”  

Levin noted, “Reducing this electric bill really helps on the bottom line.”Why is going for the grant worth it?  “Cuts the cost of the system in half,” said Levin. “The return on investment with solar is fantastic!”   

REAP Grant Application Deadlines for 2024:  March 31, June 30, September 30. See more program details here from the USDA.  Agricultural producers can be in rural or nonrural areas.  Other businesses must be located in rural areas with populations of 50,000 or fewer.  You can check the USDA’s database of eligible business addresses at this link. Watch here for information on the next REAP workshop hosted by the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture.  Nonprofit Pathway Lending also assists small businesses with lower-interest bridge loans for energy projects like solar.  For interviews or more information about solar for small business and using energy grants, contact [email protected] at Solar Alliance or call 865-221-8349.