wiredInUSA december 2018

Power for rural areas M A K I N G T H E NEWS

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $1.6 billion in 46 rural electric utility infrastructure projects across 24 states. “Reliable and affordable power is an underpinning for economic development and quality of life,” said Anne Hazlett, assistant to the secretary for rural development. The projects will help build or improve 5,833 miles of line, and will include $307 million for smart grid technologies to improve systemoperations andmonitor grid security. The investmentsareexpectedtobenefit 7 million rural business and residential consumers across the country.

will use a $124 million loan to add 144 miles of line, improve 205 miles of line, and make other system improvements including a $24 million investment in smart grid technologies. Minnkota Power Cooperative, with a service territory of approximately 35,000 square miles and a population of 300,000, will use a $67.4 million loan to finance generation and transmission improvements. Georgia Transmission Corporation (GTC) will use $93.9 million to finance transmission improvement projects for over 1.8 million consumers. GTC owns and maintains approximately 3,410 miles of transmission line and is the largest cooperative-owned transmission system in the United States.

Beneficiaries include Ohio’s South- Central Power cooperative, which

9

wiredInUSA - December 2018