Penelec SEF of the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies Loan Program (FirstEnergy Territory)

The Met-Ed / Penelec Sustainable Energy Fund has already allocated all of the funding that it had available for 2022. They are currently in the process of strategic planning for 2023-25, and will soon be making announcements about funding priority areas and/or any grant opportunities in late 2024 or early 2025. Please stay tuned to the Met-Ed / Penelec SEF website for further announcements. FirstEnergy (formerly GPU) established the Metropolitan Edison Company Sustainable Energy Fund and the Penelec Sustainable Energy Fund in 2000. The Community Foundation for the Alleghenies in Johnstown, Pennsylvania administers the Penelec loan and grant components of the Fund, which has assets of approximately $9.1 million. The majority of funding available from the fund takes the form of investments made in businesses pursuing one or more of the fund's objectives. These funds typically will be distributed as loans or equity investments.

The program is open to any individual, organization, governmental entity, or corporation. Penelec Sustainable Energy Fund and Metropolitan Edison Sustainable Energy Fund share an advisory committee and are commonly referred to in the singular as the Met Ed / Penelec Sustainable Energy Fund. The fund is designed to promote: The development and use of renewable energy and clean-energy technologies; Energy conservation and efficiency; Sustainable-energy businesses; and Projects that improve the environment in the companies' service territories, as defined by their relationship to the companies' transmission and distribution facilities. As identified on the program web site, specific types of projects eligible for loans may include renewable electricity generation projects for on-site use or grid supply; projects involving the development of a sustainable energy technology (e.g., solar panel manufacturing); businesses that use renewable energy in the operation of a business; and businesses that enhance energy efficiency and conservation. Examples of projects funded in the past are available on the program web site, along with details of the investment guidelines.