90-4-1005. Energy development and demonstration grant program. (1) There is an energy development and demonstration grant program within the department of environmental quality to fund technology development and demonstration:

(a) advancing the development and utilization of energy storage systems, including but not limited to mediums, such as accumulators, fuel cells, batteries, and green hydrogen storage systems as defined in 15-6-163, that store energy that may be drawn upon at a later date for use;

(b) developing storage systems specifically designed to store energy generated from eligible renewable resources, including but not limited to compressed air energy and green hydrogen storage systems;

(c) promoting the efficiency, environmental performance, and cost-competitiveness of energy storage systems beyond the current level of technology; and

(d) advancing the development of alternative energy systems as defined in 15-32-102 and green hydrogen facilities as defined in 15-6-163.

(2) Entities that may be eligible for grants include but are not limited to units of the Montana university system, agricultural research centers, or private entities or research centers.

(3) Money appropriated to the department of environmental quality for the purpose of the energy development and demonstration grant program may be used by the department for providing individual grants in amounts up to $500,000 and for administrative costs of 1% of the grant award.

(4) The grant application may include:

(a) a project plan sufficient to allow a reasonable determination regarding the potential feasibility of advancing energy storage or alternative energy systems;

(b) a business plan to allow a reasonable determination regarding the financial feasibility of the project; and

(c) a reporting process to ensure progress toward project goals.

(5) For the purposes of this section "eligible renewable resource" means a facility either located in the state or delivering electricity from another state into the state that commences commercial operation after January 1, 2005, or a hydroelectric project expansion referred to in subsection (5)(d)(iii), any of which produces electricity from one or more of the following sources:

(a) wind;

(b) solar;

(c) geothermal;

(d) water power, in the case of a hydroelectric project that:

(i) does not require a new appropriation, diversion, or impoundment of water and that has a nameplate rating of 10 megawatts or less;

(ii) is installed at an existing reservoir or on an existing irrigation system that does not have hydroelectric generation as of April 16, 2009, and has a nameplate capacity of 15 megawatts or less; or

(iii) is an expansion of an existing hydroelectric project that commences construction and increases existing generation capacity on or after October 1, 2013;

(e) landfill or farm-based methane gas;

(f) gas produced during the treatment of wastewater;

(g) low-emission, nontoxic biomass based on dedicated energy crops, animal wastes, or solid organic fuels from wood, forest, or field residues, including wood pieces that have been treated with chemical preservatives, such as creosote, pentachlorophenol, or copper-chrome arsenic, and that are used at a facility that has a nameplate capacity of 5 megawatts or less;

(h) hydrogen derived from any of the sources in this subsection for use in fuel cells; and

(i) the renewable energy fraction from:

(i) the sources identified in this subsection (5) of electricity production from a multiple-fuel process with fossil fuels;

(ii) flywheel storage as defined in 15-6-157(4)(d);

(iii) hydroelectric pumped storage as defined in 15-6-157(4)(e);

(iv) batteries; and

(v) compressed air derived from any of the sources in this subsection (5) that is forced into an underground storage reservoir and later released, heated, and passed through a turbine generator.