Ethical Electric, a renewable energy company providing 100 percent clean electricity to retail power customers, has received a $1.25 million cooperative award from the U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative. A roughly 50 percent cost share brings the total value of the award to more than $2.5 million. With the award, the company will build a technology platform to take community solar to scale, increasing the availability and cost effectiveness of solar development. 

Ethical Electric will leverage its market position as a retail energy provider offering only 100 percent renewable energy to reduce community solar soft costs at least 75 percent by:

• Lowering customer acquisition costs via data-driven propensity modeling and micro-targeting
• Aggregating demand through new and existing customer prospecting 

Community solar represents one of the largest opportunities to advance renewable energy development in the United States, making solar power possible for millions of residents who cannot choose rooftop installation. The cost of acquiring residential solar customers has been a persistent challenge to lowering the cost of community solar development. Ethical Electric's platform will be leveraged by both developers and investors to bring community solar to the renewable energy marketplace. 

"Community solar has the potential to expand access to solar energy in the U.S. market to potentially all Americans," said Tom Matzzie, Founder and CEO of Ethical Electric. "Ethical Electric's goal is to use our proven expertise to bring community solar to hundreds of thousands of Americans who are not able to access it today." 

Ethical Electric's mission is making 100 percent renewable energy available to all. Building on its existing retail platform, the company will make community solar cost effective and accessible to all residential customers. 

The community solar offerings will be launched under the new name of CleanChoice Energy. 

Ethical Electric | www.ethicalelectric.com 

The U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative | www.energy.gov/sunshot