Appalachian Community Capital to launch Green Bank

Appalachian Community Capital, the Christiansburg-based community development financial institution for the Appalachian Valley, plans to launch the Green Bank for Rural America with a $500 million award from the Environmental Protection Agency, it announced Friday.

Focused on financing up to 2,000 new energy projects that could create up to 13,000 jobs, the Green Bank will leverage private capital to fund $1.6 billion in projects across the coalfields of Southwest Virginia and parts of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North and South Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and West Virginia in the Appalachian region, as well as other rural communities nationwide. ACC’s statement notes that the projects also could reduce up to 850,000 tons of pollution annually and generate 460 megawatts of clean energy or establish storage for clean energy by 2030.

“The Green Bank for Rural America is a place-based effort that will be a hub for investment and technical assistance to community lenders, local leaders and workforce development partners across the United States,” Donna Gambrell, ACC president and CEO, said in a statement. “We are grateful to the EPA for this recognition. We want to ensure that no communities are left behind and that low-income and disadvantaged communities in Appalachia and other parts of this country benefit from efforts that will result in healthy communities for generations to come.”

The EPA awarded $500 million to ACC as part of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, a $27 billion federal initiative under the Inflation Reduction Act. The award came from the $6 billion Clean Communities Investment Accelerator, which provides grants to nonprofit organizations in struggling communities, focusing on new technology projects.

According to the award’s structure, the Green Bank must provide $300 million in capitalization funding to community lenders by March 31, 2026, and it must raise $180 million in private capital and reduce or avoid 47,000 tons of pollution by the same deadline. By year four — a deadline of March 31, 2028 — the bank must have provided $400 million in capitalization funding to lenders and mobilized $780 million in private capital, as well as reducing pollution by 595,000 tons.

By March 31, 2031, the bank must have provided $450 million in total funding (including $400 million in capitalization funding) to lenders, and mobilized $1.2 billion in private capital, as well as reducing pollution by 2.5 million tons.

“With climate impacts increasingly impacting all Americans, and especially those in communities that have been historically left behind, EPA knew it had to move swiftly and deliberately to get this historic funding out the door,” EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said in a statement. “American families will soon feel the benefits in the form of lower energy costs and revitalized communities, while the United States leads the clean energy economy of the future. The [awardees] announced today will deliver transformational investments for American communities, businesses and families and unleash tens of thousands of clean technology projects like putting solar on small businesses, electrifying affordable housing, providing EV loans for young families and countless others.”

In addition to ACC’s $500 million award, the Opportunity Finance Network received $2.29 billion to provide capital and assistance to community lenders nationwide, and Inclusiv received $1.87 billion to deliver funding to credit unions to help customers get loans for energy-focused projects. Other recipients are the Justice Climate Fund and the Native CDFI Network.

Gambrell will serve on the Green Bank’s steering committee, which includes leaders from multiple organizations that will guide and support the Green Bank. Other members represent Main Street America, Grow America, CommunityWorks Carolina, Kentucky Highlands Investment Corp. and regional organizations in other parts of Appalachia. The Green Bank’s CEO has yet to be selected, according to documents provided by the EPA.

At first, the Green Bank will prioritize investments in 582 Appalachian counties — including those in Southwest Virginia — and rural communities across the nation, as well as rural communities of color and Indigenous communities. In addition to financing energy projects, the Green Bank will offer technical assistance to eligible rural areas nationwide.

“I praise the coalition of organizations — close to 50 lenders, community organizations, educational institutions and assistance providers — who came together to contribute to the proposal,” Clint Gwin, ACC board chair and president and CEO of Pathway Lending in Tennessee, said in a statement. “Their participation and collaboration have been phenomenal. This will be a game changer for historically under-invested communities and the community development finance field that supports underserved areas.”