Governor Healey Announces $2.5 Million to Make Home Energy Upgrades More Affordable

Seven projects will test innovative solutions to lower upfront costs for energy-efficient heating, cooling, and home improvements

BOSTON - The Healey-Driscoll Administration today announced $2.5 million in grants to seven projects developing innovative ways to make home energy upgrades more affordable for Massachusetts residents. Through the Mass Clean Energy Center's (MassCEC) Cost Reduction Lab, the projects will test new technologies and approaches designed to reduce upfront costs by at least 15 percent, helping more households access energy-efficient heating, cooling, and other improvements that can lower their energy bills.

"Massachusetts families are dealing with high energy costs, and we need to do everything we can to bring those costs down," said Governor Maura Healey. "Making your home more energy efficient can help lower your bills, but the upfront costs are often too high. These investments will help develop new, affordable ways for residents to upgrade their homes, save money, and stay comfortable year-round. We want to find solutions that work and make them available to more families across Massachusetts."

"Whether you own your home or rent, everyone deserves access to affordable, energy-efficient heating and cooling," said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. "These grants will help test innovative approaches that make home improvements simpler and less expensive, from installing heat pumps to upgrading windows. By bringing together local partners, businesses, and clean energy innovators, we can find practical solutions that help residents save money and work for communities across Massachusetts."

"Energy-efficient, solar-powered, and electric technologies are lowering people's energy bills. These innovative new projects will help more renters and low-income households afford these upgrades," said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rebecca Tepper. "Plug-in solar, streamlined installation, smart thermostats, and other technologies will help lower upfront costs and unlock lower bills and maintenance costs for more people."

Small residential buildings account for more than 60 percent of carbon pollution from Massachusetts buildings, making cost-effective approaches for improving existing homes an important part of the state's broader clean energy efforts. Energy efficiency and electrification projects are more affordable to maintain and lower energy bills; however, upfront costs can be a barrier for some households.

The Cost Reduction Lab is designed to identify approaches that can address these challenges at the project and market level. Awardees will demonstrate, document, and evaluate their solutions, with findings intended to help successful approaches reach a broader market beyond the individual projects receiving funding.

"The Cost Reduction Lab is about testing new business models and approaches to technologies that can lower costs," said Mass Clean Energy Center CEO Ben Downing. "We want to find what works, prove it in the field, and get those solutions into the hands of more homeowners and service providers."

"Residential clean energy technologies and energy efficiency improvements are critical to easing costs and achieving Massachusetts' climate goals. The Cost Reduction Lab's investment in innovative solutions supports homeowners by creating new approaches to support sustainable choices," said State Senator Jamie Eldridge (D-Acton). "I am very pleased to see the MassCEC's continued commitment to decarbonizing our communities and reducing energy prices for residents across the Commonwealth. These cutting-edge projects advance Massachusetts toward an affordable and green energy transition for all."

The Cost Reduction Lab awardees are:

• All In Energy: $475,000

  • All In Energy will pair plug-in solar with window heat pumps in homes across Cambridge, as a potential low-cost way to make clean heating and cooling more accessible to renters. This eliminates the need for major electrical upgrades, complex installations, and shared-building coordination, and pairs electrification with on-site generation to offset bill impacts.

• Aris Hydronics: $350,000

  • Aris Hydronics will consolidate equipment, electrical infrastructure, and delivery under a single system and contractor to provide a centralized, whole-building air-to-water heat pump system. This strategy replaces fragmented, per-apartment electrification approaches with an integrated thermal platform delivering heating, cooling, domestic hot water, and ventilation.

• Electric Power Research Institute: $310,000

  • The Electric Power Research Institute will implement a modular energy management system that allows homes across Massachusetts to add new electric loads without upgrading their electrical service. The system will intelligently manage and balance electrical demand, aiming to reduce electrification costs by 30-50% and accelerate installation timelines.

• Emergent Urban Concepts: $495,000

  • Emergent Urban Concepts will establish a community-driven development model, innovative financing, and close coordination with municipal utilities for Thermal Energy Networks in Belmont and Marblehead. By demonstrating these strategies through a real project brought to construction readiness, the initiative seeks to lower customer costs, reduce peak electricity demand, and create a scalable, replicable model for affordable neighborhood-scale building decarbonization

• Manatee Energy: $250,000

  • Manatee Energy will replace custom, labor-intensive sales and design processes for heat pump installations with a standardized, digital-first delivery model tailored to common Massachusetts housing types.

• New Ecology, Inc.: $300,000

  • New Ecology will demonstrate a lower-cost alternative to window replacement using window refurbishment combined with vacuum insulated glass (VIG), which improves thermal performance without requiring full replacement. This project aims to achieve roughly 30% cost savings per window while delivering equal or better performance, generating real-world data to support adoption of window refurbishment.

• Stepwise Electrics: $320,000

  • Stepwise Electrics will demonstrate a standardized decision workflow for heat pump installers paired with installation of load management devices that assess the home's existing electrical capacity to determine when electric panel upgrades can be avoided.

For more information on the Cost Reduction Lab and future funding opportunities, visit masscec.com/program/cost-reduction-lab.

About the Mass Clean Energy Center

The Mass Clean Energy Center is a state economic development agency dedicated to accelerating the growth of the clean energy and climatetech sector across the Commonwealth to spur job creation, deliver statewide environmental benefits, increase affordability, and secure long-term economic opportunities for the people of Massachusetts. Since 2010, MassCEC has awarded $990 million in programs and investments and attracted $3 billion in private and public funds.

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