Oct. 3 (UPI) -- The U.S. Department of Energy Thursday announced a $1.5 billion transmission investment to improve electric grid reliability.
The Energy Department said the $1.5 billion will fund four transmission projects "that will improve grid reliability and resilience, relieve costly transmission congestion, and open access to affordable energy to millions of Americans across the country."
"The U.S. transmission network is the backbone of our nation's electricity system. Though our grid has served U.S. energy needs for more than a century, our country's needs are changing," said U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy David Turk in a statement.
The projects will increase grid capacity and are funded by the Biden-Harris administration's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
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The projects will enable nearly 1,000 miles of new electric transmission development and 7,100 megawatts of new capacity in Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.
The department said the the projects will also create 9,000 good-paying jobs.
They include the Aroostook Renewable Project in Maine, the Cimarron Link in Oklahoma, Southern Spirit connecting the Texas grid for the first time to southeastern U.S. power markets and Southline in New Mexico.
The Energy Department's National Transmission Planning study released Thursday was meant to be a long-term planning tool.
It found that a substantial expansion of the transmission system throughout the entire contiguous United States would deliver the biggest grid benefits. That could also save the national electric system between $270 billion to $490 billion through 2050.
"The NTP Study is designed to enhance and encourage interregional planning efforts," the DOE said in a statement. "It does not replace industry planning or identify a specific set of transmission lines that should be built. Rather, the NTP Study identifies potential opportunities for industry planners to consider projects that would benefit customers under a wide range of future scenarios."
