State-Based Financing Tools to Support Distributed and Community Wind Projects

The purpose of this program guide is to review the financing role that states, and specifically state clean energy funds, have played and can play in supporting community and distributed wind projects.

The guide describes specific financing assistance and tools that states can provide to support smaller-scale wind projects in the future. While many of these tools are applicable to a broad range of renewable energy technologies, several are unique to the specific development cycle and capital requirements of wind energy projects. To put these tools in context, the guide first provides some background on (1) the current role of state clean energy funds in supporting wind projects and (2) existing federal financial incentives in supporting wind development. The federal context is particularly critical for states to understand in designing state wind financing tools that can complement federal support.