Christine Ho, christine.ho@sierraclub.org
Knoxville, Tennessee – Today, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and ten local power companies were announced as recipients of $250 million in federal funding from the Department of Energy’s of Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships program. The funding will go toward 84 local projects that will strengthen the electric grid for local communities and enhance reliability and affordability by deploying more clean energy amid increasing new threats from destructive extreme weather.
The funding will, for the first time, connect the TVA to the Southwest Power Pool, allowing the region to access 800 megawatts of affordable wind energy when local generation options may not be available. Moreover, the investments will create 800 jobs and pour resources into 360 low-income communities and communities of color in line with the Biden-Harris Administration’s Justice40 initiative, significantly reducing outages.
The GRIP Program is funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that was signed by President Biden in 2021.
Dave Rogers, Deputy Director of Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign released the following statement:
“This news is a boon for communities and consumers alike. As TVA’s aging energy infrastructure is hit with stronger storms than ever before, projects like these put people to work by building resilient, reliable, and affordable power infrastructure across the Valley, increasing power generation through connections to low-cost, clean energy like solar and wind. This is exactly the kind of investment TVA needs to keep the lights on when we need it most. We urge TVA to continue the momentum and focus on expanding the grid even more, making it easier to connect the low cost, reliable renewable energy that customers are demanding.
Background
As part of the Biden Administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, utility companies can apply for funding support through the $10.5 billion dollar Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnership Program (GRIP). The GRIP Program was designed to facilitate the upgrade of the United State’s transmission system, which is rapidly approaching the end of its lifespan and deliver reliable, affordable, renewable energy across the country.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.