Innovative energy transmission and storage projects in 18 states receive $2.2 billion from DOE

Brief description of the dive:

• Department of Energy on Tuesday $2.2 billion awarded for eight transmission projects in 18 states, which could increase grid capacity by about 13 GW.

• The projects include about 600 miles of new transmission and 400 miles of rewired cable, as well as technologies to strengthen the grid, long-term energy storage, solar power and microgrids. The awards come from DOE’s Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships program; project sponsors will provide about $7.8 billion in funding.

• The awards are part of the Biden administration’s efforts to “aggressively promote a more modern grid, a more energy-secure future, a grid that is more reliable and resilient, and provides cleaner, more affordable energy,” Ali Zaidi, the White House’s national climate adviser, said during a news conference Monday.

Diving Insight:

The grants from the Energy Department’s $10.5 billion GRIP program — funded by bipartisan infrastructure legislation — mark the program’s second round of funding. In October, DOE awarded nearly $3.5 billion in the form of grants to support 58 projects in 44 states.

The funding announced Tuesday comes from the $5 billion Grid Innovation Program (GRIP), which focuses on projects that use new approaches to transmission, storage and distribution infrastructure to increase grid resilience and reliability.

The winning projects are:

This North Plains Connector Interregional innovation, 3 GW, The 525-kV DC project, which will connect the Western Electricity Coordinating Council, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, and the Southwest Power Pool, has received $700 million, as well as $2.9 billion in customer co-payments. Its proponents include Allete, Avista, Minnkota Power Cooperative, Montana-Dakota Utilities, NorthWestern Energy, Otter Tail Power, Portland General Electric, and Puget Sound Energy. The Montana Department of Commerce led the application effort with DOE.

This California is using advanced, reliable technologies to increase the efficiency of its transmission network. project, a public-private partnership that will rebuild more than 100 miles of transmission lines with advanced conductor technologies and implement dynamic line-capacity ratings to quickly help integrate more renewable energy into California, according to the DOE. The department awarded the project $600.6 million, as well as $900.8 million in matching funds. The project, sponsored by the California Energy Commission, also supports transmission interconnection reform through process improvements, an interconnection portal, workforce investments and the development of educational resources, the department said. California Independent System Operator, Pacific Gas and Electric and Southern California Edison were partners on the grant application.

Strengthen New Englandwhich includes new and improved interconnection points for 4.8 GW of offshore wind and a long-term energy storage system. It combines $389.3 million in DOE funding with nearly $500 million in grantee support. Project developers supporting the application include Elevate Renewables, Eversource Energy, National Grid and an unnamed supplier of multi-day energy storage technology.

The Reliable Electric Lines: Infrastructure Expansion Framework project, which calls for the use of advanced conductor cables to increase transmission capacity in existing rights-of-way. It will improve grid reliability in four states and five tribal nations and connect more than 500 megawatts of renewable energy, the DOE said. The project, sponsored by the Utah Office of Energy Development, received $249.6 million in federal funding, which was matched by $252 million in grantee funding.

The Tribal Energy Resilience and Sovereignty microgrid project, which will serve the Hoopa Valley, Yurok, Karuk, and Blue Lake Rancheria tribes in an area prone to power outages in Northern California, was sponsored by the Redwood Coast Energy Authority and received $87.6 million from DOE, as well as $89 million in matching funds.

Data Center Flexibility as a Grid Enhancing Technology project in Virginia and South Carolina, which will receive $85 million from DOE and will be matched by $106 million. The Virginia Department of Energy and its partners plan to use the funds to build battery storage systems Iron Mountain Data Center in Virginia. They also plan to deploy a combination of turbine, solar and battery storage technologies at the Grace Complex in South Carolina, according to the DOE.

The North Carolina Innovative Transmission Rebuild project, which involves rebuilding the 230 kV transmission line with high-temperature, low-pressure advanced conductors and monopole steel structures to increase resilience and reliability. DOE awarded the Duke Energy-supported project $57.1 million, as well as $57.1 million in sponsor funding. The Lee-Milburnie Rebuild project adds 1,600 MW of interconnection capacity in eastern North Carolina, which will help connect proposed solar projects and potential wind development, according to statements made on May 28 at the North Carolina Utilities Commission by the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy and other groups.

Clear Path New Yorka transmission project by New York Power Authority, Invenergy and EnergyRe that aims to deliver 1.3 GW of renewable energy from upstate New York to New York City. It has raised $30 million in federal funding, which is matched by $3.2 billion in sponsor investments.

“With these awards, the Department of Energy is addressing some of the most pressing challenges facing our energy system, including the need to connect more clean energy to the grid and make it more efficient,” Harry Godfrey, managing director of federal investments and manufacturing at Advanced Energy United, said in a statement.

DOE expects to announce the second round of applications for the Grid Resilience Utility and Industry Grants program and the Smart Grid Grants program under GRIP later this year.