In September 2023, the U.S. Department of Energy formally awarded the Colorado Energy Office and Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) electric grid resilience formula funding (IIJA 40101(d)). This federal grant will support three grid resilience grant programs and one study. Click the links below to learn more about each:
- Microgrids for Community Resilience (managed by the Department of Local Affairs)
- Grid Hardening Grants for Small Communities
- Advanced Grid Monitoring
- Colorado Microgrid Roadmap (draft due July 2024, final due January 2025)
In January 2024, the U.S. Department of Energy announced the next round of funding for this program. Colorado is allocated $8,359,178, which we will distribute to Colorado’s electric utilities and local governments to increase grid resiliency in the state through the grant programs listed above
CEO and DOLA presented an informational webinar about the third year of grid resilience funding on March 6, 2024.
Apply for the Community-led Critical Infrastructure and Facility Prioritization Pilot Program
The Colorado Resiliency Office (CRO) and Colorado Energy Office (CEO) are looking for communities that are interested in improving their energy resilience to participate in a pilot of a "Community-led Critical Infrastructure and Facility Prioritization" process. Utilities are a required component of this process, but local government or other key local representatives would be the lead facilitator for this.
By going through the process, community partners will build consensus around which infrastructure and facilities projects to prioritize for energy resilience investments, such as microgrids, grid hardening, or advanced grid monitoring.
View Community-Led Critical Infrastructure & Facility Prioritization Overview
The selected pilot communities will receive between 4-12 hours of individualized support from the CRO and CEO including:
- Support for the lead facilitator in going through the "Community-led Critical Infrastructure & Facilities Prioritization" process;
- Facilitation support during an in-person workshop; and
- Technical assistance and guidance during and after the prioritization process to support the community in pursuing appropriate energy resilience resources.
Note: Only four communities will be selected for the pilot. Apply by August 16, 2024.
Contact information and updates
Please reach out to gridresiliency@state.co.us with any questions.