TVA and partners seek grants to strengthen grid
The grants are planned for funding 141 energy security projects to ensure communities have access to clean electricity.
Image for illustration purposes.
USA, Tennessee: The Tennessee Valley Authority has partnered with 15 local power companies and the Tennessee Valley Public Power Association to seek two grants worth $350 million from the US Department of Energy’s Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program. The grants are planned for funding 141 energy security projects to ensure communities have access to reliable, affordable, clean electricity.
They might enable the construction of an inter-regional 800 MW line and unlock more than 6 GW of solar in TVA’s interconnection queue to support economic growth and expand clean energy across seven states. Through its partnership with others, TVA reports that the Valley region has already secured over $300 million in federal funding grants for 15 community projects through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act.
TVA is focused on building power generation to serve the region’s growth, and GRIP funding is critical because it will help deliver reliable, affordable, resilient, and clean energy to homes and businesses. If the funding is secured, the projects will advance the quality of life in nearly 600 disadvantaged communities in the region, create about 800 jobs, invest a total of $760 million in disadvantaged communities to support schools, hospitals, public safety organizations, and emergency shelters, improve the lives of over 2.5 million customers while reducing power bills and increasing access to renewable energy to 10 million consumers, strengthen the grid by adding transmission and distribution lines that include advanced conductors, and mitigate risk from extreme heat, wildfires, tornadoes, storms, and other severe weather events.
Source: T&D World