Mark Rose of rural Alpha is just one several southern Minnesota farmers planning a more energy-efficient future thanks to federal funding secured through the work of the state’s two U.S. senators.
Jackson County-based Mark Rose Farms Inc. is one of 36 Minnesota farms and small businesses across southern Minnesota — and one of 76 across the state — to receive a share of nearly $7.9 million in federal funds earmarked for the installation of clean energy technology.
Rose plans to use the federal grant funds to purchase and install an energy-efficient grain dryer. Federal officials estimate the $196,000 dryer will yield an annual energy cost savings of nearly $9,000 and an annual energy savings of almost 155,000 kilowatt hours, enough to power 14 homes.
The grant awards were announced last month by U.S. Sens. Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, both members of the Senate Agriculture Committee. The funding and projects are possible thanks to the Renewable Energy for America program, which Smith championed and strengthened in the Inflation Reduction Act, which both senators supported.
“The clean energy transition is happening; the question is whether we lead or follow. I want us to lead,” Smith said last month. “But as we make the switch to cleaner, cheaper energy, we need to make sure everyone benefits. That’s one reason why projects funded by REAP are so important. These investments will save farms and small businesses across Minnesota thousands of dollars a year in energy costs while helping reduce harmful emissions.”
Klobuchar agreed.
“Investing in long-term energy is a win-win for rural customers and businesses,” Klobuchar said. “With this federal funding, we’re taking a big step toward deploying new energy technologies to power rural communities across Minnesota for decades to come.”
Other funded projects across southern Minnesota include a solar array for a farm near Hartland, a geothermal heating and cooling system for a trucking business machine shop near Ostrander, a ground-mounted solar array for a hog farm near Wells and energy-efficient heat mats in hog farrowing crates for a farm near Truman.
The projects the nearly $7.9 million in grants will fund are estimated to result in total annual energy savings of more than 98 million kWh and total annual energy cost savings of close to $2.6 million.