DOE offers $300M to boost transmission siting and permitting
USA, Washington: The U.S. Department of Energy is offering up to $300 million for states, tribes and local governments to bolster transmission siting and permitting processes while supporting economic development.
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USA, Washington: The U.S. Department of Energy is offering up to $300 million for states, tribes and local governments to bolster transmission siting and permitting processes while supporting economic development.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced a funding opportunity of up to $300 million in grants for states, tribes, and local governments to accelerate and strengthen electric transmission siting and permitting processes. This Transmission Siting and Economic Development (TSED) grant program is a new initiative designed to overcome challenges to expanding transmission capacity while supporting communities along new and upgraded lines. Accelerated construction of new electric transmission infrastructure is essential to ensure the deployment of reliable and affordable energy, and meet the goals of reaching 100% clean electricity by 2035 and reducing U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by 50-52% below 2005 levels in 2030.
“To meet our ambitious clean energy goals, we need to expand the nation’s transmission capacity by 60% over the next seven years,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “Now, thanks to President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, we have the funding to build out a grid chock-full of clean, cheap, reliable electricity and accelerate transmission expansion while creating good-paying jobs across the country.”
This grant program to support state, local, and tribal siting and permitting activities is part of efforts to advance transmission buildout, including by streamlining federal reviews of transmission projects and investing in grid upgrades that will help lower electricity costs, strengthen reliability, and reduce climate pollution. The announcement of $300 million for Transmission Siting and Economic Development is the first tranche available of this $760 million program established by the Inflation Reduction Act.
Improving and expanding transmission infrastructure is critical to ensuring that people across the USA have reliable, affordable power when and where they need it. Estimates project that transmission systems will need to expand by 60% by 2030 and may need to triple by 2050 to meet the growing clean electricity and resiliency demands. The TSED grant program will provide financial support to entities responsible for issuing the permits needed to move forward with critical electric transmission projects. The program can fund studies, modelling, environmental planning, and analysis to assess alternatives, inform decision making, and reduce the time for processing applications. It encourages engagement with members of the public, and facilitates participation in regulatory proceedings at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and other regulatory agencies, and other activities as approved by the Secretary of Energy.
Increased electric transmission investment can deliver benefits such as lower energy costs, enhanced grid reliability and resilience, and pollution emissions reductions. The program aims to expand these benefits by providing financial support to economic development projects in communities impacted by new transmission development. These projects will ensure meaningful engagement, invest in the workforce. Within the $300 million funding opportunity announcement, TSED grants are available to state, tribal, and local government applicants to support engagement, economic development, and other benefits. Community-based projects can include energy investments such as resilient microgrids, renewable power integration, or electric vehicle charging infrastructure and other project which benefit the community. Funds can be used to support the workforce with job training and apprenticeship programs.
Transmission developers are not eligible for TSED grants, but they can be key partners. They might work with siting and permitting agencies to propose innovative solutions to improve cross-jurisdictional coordination, strengthen permitting processes, and resolve permitting bottlenecks, among other things. The TSED grant program is intended to encourage innovation, and be driven directly by communities and their needs.
Source: US Department of Energy