US DOE Initiative On Grid Resiliency & Innovation

Written by Satish Saini

As part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Grid Deployment Office is administering a $10.5 billion Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program to enhance grid flexibility and improve the resilience of the power system against growing threats of extreme weather and climate change. These programs will accelerate the deployment of transformative projects that aim to ensure the reliability of the power sector’s infrastructure, helping all communities access affordable, reliable, clean electricity anytime, anywhere.

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On October 18, 2023, the U.S. Department of Energy announced up to $3.46 billion in Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program investments for 58 projects across 44 states to strengthen electric grid resilience and reliability across America.

The Program includes three funding mechanisms: 

1. Grid Resilience Utility and Industry Grants support activities that will modernize the electric grid to reduce impacts due to extreme weather and natural disasters. This program will fund comprehensive transmission and distribution technology solutions that will mitigate multiple hazards across a region, including wildfires, floods, hurricanes, extreme heat, extreme cold, storms, and any other event that can cause a disruption to the power system.
2. Smart Grid Grants increase the flexibility, efficiency, and reliability of the electric power system. Smart Grid Grants particularly focus on increasing the capacity of the transmission system, preventing faults that may lead to wildfires (or other system disturbances), integrating renewable energy at the transmission and distribution levels, and facilitating the integration of increasingly electrified vehicles, buildings, & other devices.
3. Grid Innovation Program provides financial assistance to multiple states, Tribes, local governments, and public utility commissions to collaborate with electric sector owners and operators to deploy projects that use innovative approaches to transmission, storage, and distribution infrastructure, enhancing grid resilience and reliability.

The article will cover details about this program and the types of projects and utilities under this initiative.

 

To view all articles in this issue, please go to November 2023 eNewsletter. For a downloadable copy, please visit the IEEE Smart Cities Resource Center.