Maryland Energy Administration Commercial, Industrial & Agricultural Grant Program

The Maryland Energy Administration Commercial, Industrial and Agricultural Grant Program provides grant funding to Maryland businesses, nonprofits, and agricultural operations for energy efficiency upgrades and clean energy installations.

The FY26 program accepted applications through January 30, 2026, received 58 applications, and the program budget allowed MEA to fund the 31 top-scoring applications, with awards pending director approval as of March 2026. The FY27 program is expected to launch around September 2026.

Eligible applicants are commercial, industrial, and agricultural entities in Maryland seeking to reduce energy costs and consumption through projects such as HVAC upgrades, lighting improvements, and renewable energy installations.

Commercial & Industrial Grant Program Accessibility Information ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ Commercial & Industrial Grant Program The FY26 C&I program’s application deadline was January 30, 2026. The program cannot accept new applications until the FY27 program is launched in (or around) September 2026. March 25, 2026 UPDATE: MEA received 58 FY26 C&I applications.

Evaluation and scoring are complete. The program budget allows MEA to offer funding to the 31 top-scoring applications. Those 31 potential awards are currently awaiting approval by the MEA director.

Successful applicants can expect an email bearing a notice of award that includes a letter of commitment that requires countersignature via Docusign. Our best estimate is that these emails will be distributed by the end of March 2026. NOTE that a letter of commitment does not constitute a grant agreement.

Draft agreements, which will also require counter-signature, will follow as a separate document by approximately mid-June 2026. Also, note that project expenses eligible for reimbursement are eligible to items obtained by procurement commitments that POST-DATE the grant agreement’s ratification. Please see the Funding Opportunity Announcement (link below) for details.

Want to pursue a FY27 grant? <<WATCH THIS SPACE FOR UPDATES>> Program Description: T he Maryland Energy Administration’s (MEA’s) Commercial & Industrial Grant Program provides incentives to owners of Maryland-based commercial, industrial, data center, and non-profit facilities to invest in improvements that result in energy performance that exceeds current codes or standards.

Both new construction and existing facilities may be considered for grants. **NEW FOR FY26** MEA is offering grants covering 100% of total project costs for qualified energy improvements made to non-governmental facilities with over 50% of their clientele defined as coming from Low Income Populations. In all other cases, FY26 C&I grants provide less than 100% coverage of proposal costs.

See below for details. Type of Grant Program: The FY26 C&I Program offers grants on a competitive basis. Each proposal received prior to the application deadline will be scored by MEA for its quality of documentation and for the magnitude of environmental benefits conveyed by its proposed scope of work.

Awards will be issued in rank order as determined by scoring results until the program budget is deleted. ​ When winning a grant award covering less than 100% of project costs net of any utility rebates, a grantee may finance the balance of costs for a proposed scope of work either with (1) funds out-of-pocket, or (2) by applying to MEA separately for a Jane E. Lawton Conservation Loan .

MEA requires a separate application specific to the Lawton loan. If a loan is desired, applicants are encouraged to submit a Lawton application at the same time that the C&I grant application is submitted. NOTE that the FY26 program offers 100% project cost reimbursement to qualified applicants demonstrating that their facilities are utilized predominantly by low income populations.

Application Deadline: The FY26 program’s final program budget is $8,800,000. MEA received a total of 57 applications, submitted by 49 different entities. Awards will be divided into three separate areas of interest (AOI): FY26 Program Activity and Budget: Subject to funding availability, the FY26 program has a total budget of up to $8,400,000, which will be divided into three separate areas of interest (AOI): AOI.

1: EXISTING FACILITIES, GENERAL POPULATIONS Commercial, office, retail, hospitality, institutional, multifamily residential properties with five or more units, research, laboratory, data centers, private elementary school and college facilities, factories, material processing facilities, warehouses, or distribution centers.

These are facilities already in use and will use the proposed energy improvements to continue the enterprise’s same activities. Stationary facilities only. AOI.

2: EXISTING FACILITIES, LOW INCOME POPULATIONS Eligible facilities are those that are already in use and will use the proposed energy improvements to continue the enterprise’s same activities. “Low income populations” describes the individuals that comprise the majority, i.e., 50% or more, of people served by the subject facility.

See Appendices A and D of the program’s Funding Opportunity Announcement for facility parameters that meet this criterion. “New construction” includes facilities being fabricated for the first time, facilities subject to substantial rehab that includes replacement of major mechanical systems, or existing structures repurposed after one year or more of vacancy.

Eligible Applicants: Entities eligible to apply for grants are business (registered corporations, LLPs, LLCs, GPs, etc.) or non-profit entities that operate facilities that perform any of the following activities: Manufacturing or industrial production/distribution/warehousing Office, commercial, service, or retail operations Private school (Pre-K, K-12) education and administration Privately-owned college and university education and administration ​ Multifamily residential buildings containing five or more units Institutional human or community services​ Please watch the three brief informational videos below: For more information, please see the Funding Opportunity Announcement linked below.

​ Program Documents (Updated: 01/08/2026) ​ : Frequently Asked Questions V05 (Dec. 31, 2025) FY26 C&I Grant Program FOA V02 FY26 C&I Scoring Templates. These are provided for applicants’ reference only.

MEA staff perform actual scoring. ​​ FY26 SCORE TEMPLATE AOI1 V03 FY26 SCORE TEMPLATE AOI2 V03 FY26 SCORE TEMPLATE AOI3 V03 MEA Grant Agreement General Provisions, which are posted on the Jane E. Lawton Co​nservation Loan Program​ for additional funding options.

Education Sector FY26 Grant Program Directory ​ For more information on the CI&A Grant Program, contact MEA by email at [email protected] or by phone​: Christopher Russell, Program Manager: (443) 908-1767 Gus Norrbom, Energy Specialist: (410) 536-3093​ Tell us about your experience with the Maryland Energy Administration. Click here to complete a three question customer experience survey . ​ We're available on the following channels.

ensures HTML content is downloaded and parsed first. This also means the site can begin to display prior to loading all JS, which helps display performance.