10,000 buildings electrified in California.

Hometown to Facebook, Menlo Park, is taking a big step in its Climate Action Plan of carbon neutrality by 2030. What is this big step? They’re “turning buildings into Teslas” as BlocPower founder, Donnel Baird, puts it. Now, what does that mean?

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Menlo Park, California, made a deal with New York company, BlocPower, to decarbonize 95% of its buildings by 2030. They will accomplish this by replacing the city’s fossil-fuel infrastructure with climate-friendly heat pumps, solar panels, and electric car chargers.

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“Climate technology firm BlocPower and the City of Menlo Park have signed a public-private partnership to undertake building electrification across the Menlo Park community in the San Francisco Bay region of northern California.” - BloombergGreen

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This isn’t the first decarbonizing project BlocPower has undertaken. In the past, they have focused on low-income communities. Last year, they even partnered with Ithaca, New York to decarbonize some of its buildings.

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To accomplish the goals outlined in the Climate Action Plan, they must convert more than 10,000 buildings. They will start by electrifying 15 buildings this year and 10 in 2023. In 2024, the project takes off by planning to electrify 1,000 or more buildings each year.

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What does electrifying entail? EV charging stations, battery storage, solar and heat pump water heaters to name a few. Because the city’s grid is already working hard to keep up with demand, they will have to generate much more clean energy to keep up with the needs of the project.

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How will they generate that much electricity? Solar, of course! BlocPower is planning to leverage equipment supplier relationships to lower costs as the program scales and ensure access to project financing. They are also working with Menlo Spark, a local non-profit organization, to raise as much as $35 million to reduce costs for low-to-moderate-income homes.

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“I’m extremely excited about what the BlocPower partnership can do for Menlo Park,” said Mayor Betsy Nash. She isn’t the only one looking forward to this undertaking. 

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State Senator Josh Becker said, “I support this effort and look forward to using lessons learned from this program to inform the broader policy landscape of building electrification.”

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The impact of this project doesn’t stop at 10,000 buildings. It’s opening doors for lower-income areas to gain access to solar as well as flood the solar industry with more competitive pricing. This movement isn't limited to Menlo Park. The US Department of Energy has made it clear that projects like this will become more and more popular around the country.

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What does that mean for you? The future is solar and it’s time to join the movement! Even better - get paid to do it! Learn more about how you can earn with Frugll here.

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Ready to start saving? Talk to one of our experts today.

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