November 22, 2022
The Biden administration announced, via the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), that all Americans can now access $13 billion in new financing opportunities for the expansion and modernization of the U.S. power grid in an effort to modernize the electric grid situation.
According to the White House, an estimated 70% of the nation’s transmission lines are over 25 years old, putting American communities, critical infrastructure, and economic interests at risk.
In an effort to improve the situation, the Biden Administration is distributing these funds. The funds are proposed not only to save aging electrical infrastructures, but also to achieve Biden’s goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 50% below 2005 levels by 2030 and achieving 100% clean electricity by 2035 in a cost-effective manner.
Furthermore, in addition to infrastructure upgrades and clean energy goals, the DOE wishes to expand America’s electricity reach. According to the report, independent estimates show that the United States will need to expand electricity transmission systems by 60% by 2030, and possibly triple current capacity by 2050, to accommodate a rapidly increasing supply of clean energy, meet growing power demand for EVs and electric home heating, and reduce power outages caused by climate change.
The $13 billion funding is designated as the Grid Resilience Innovative Partnership (GRIP) program and the Transmission Facilitation Program and is made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act signed into law by President Joe Biden. However, the areas to bid on funds from are: $2.5 billion for grid resilience, $3 billion for smart grids, $5 billion for innovative grid concepts, and the remaining $2.5 billion for the Transmission Facilitation Program.
The sources for this piece include an article in TheRegister.
