The U.S. Department of Energy will soon spend billions on electric grid infrastructure projects across the nation. The spending endeavor is the largest ever and is intended to lower costs and create more “clean energy.”
White House infrastructure implementation coordinator Mitch Landrieu and Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm announced on Wednesday that a total of $3.46 billion would be spent on 58 projects across 44 states. These funds will be used to “modernize” the power grid across the nation and supplement the existing grid to ensure its dependability even in unfavorable weather conditions.
“These transformative projects … will help bring more than 35 gigawatts of new renewable energy online, invest in 400 microgrids, and maintain and create good-paying union jobs with three out of four projects partnering with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) — helping deliver on the Biden-Harris Administration’s ambitious climate agenda,” reads an October 18 press release from the Department of Energy.
Some of these funds will be directed to programs in the State of Texas, one of which is the $32 million Community Energy Resiliency Program based in San Antonio, which would see the construction of microgrids centered around solar energy and batteries as well as “smart grid technologies such as fault location, isolation, and service restoration (FLISR) and Volt/VAR optimization (VVO).”
Xcel Energy, based in Minnesota, will also receive funding for its own “Wildfire Mitigation and Extreme Weather Resilience” project, which will benefit Texas, among other states.
“Xcel Energy will implement seven projects in its Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas service territory that will provide system-wide wildfire risk mitigation including non-expulsion fuses; 6,000 wood pole fire-resistant coating; wildfire safety settings for restoration response; undergrounding of select high-risk distribution circuits; hazard tree clearing; wind strength testing; and fire spread modeling,” reads a brief on the Xcel Project.
Granholm said the projects will help keep the nation’s “aging transmission systems” running in the face of “extreme weather events … [to] ensure America’s power grid can provide reliable, affordable power.”
“Today’s announcement represents the largest-ever direct investment in critical grid infrastructure, supporting projects that will harden systems, improve energy reliability and affordability — all while generating union jobs for highly skilled workers,” she added.
