The challenge of extreme weather in the United States: $2 billion investment in 42 states

With an investment of $2 billion, the government of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris seeks to expand the capacity of the electricity network in the face of extreme weather, whether cold or hot.

These are 38 projects in 42 states that will modernize nearly a thousand miles of transmission, increase grid capacity for growing electricity demand and generate thousands of jobs, according to a White House document sent to reporters.

“The devastating and deadly hurricanes Helene and Milton have highlighted how extreme weather events continue to stress the nation’s aging power systems,” said Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “The Administration’s Investment Agenda in the United States [Biden-Harris] has provided the largest investment in the grid in U.S. history, helping us add more power to the grid at an accelerated rate, improve reliability and resiliency, and invest in innovative technologies so customers across the country can access more renewable energy and pay less for your electricity.”

Projects selected through the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) program will implement new transmission and distribution infrastructure and technology upgrades to enable more than 7.5 gigawatts (GW) of grid capacity, the Biden Administration said.

It will also accelerate interconnection for new clean energy projects, support nearly 6,000 good-paying jobs, and catalyze more than $4.2 billion in total public and private investment to deliver reliable, affordable, and clean energy.

“These projects, which cover 42 states and the District of Columbia, include the six projects in the Southeast that President Biden announced during his trip to Florida last week,” the authority said. “Those six selected projects included utilities that were impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Select projects announced today will modernize more than 950 miles of transmission by constructing more than 300 miles of new transmission lines and rerouting or adding grid improvement technologies to more than 650 miles of transmission lines to increase capacity of the existing lines.

John Podesta, senior advisor to the president for international climate policy, highlighted the challenge of current projects to achieve “more than double” current transmission capacity.

“Today’s awards are moving us toward that future by expanding transmission capacity across the country, getting more out of the grid we already have, and making our electric system more reliable and resilient to the extreme weather fueled by the climate crisis. “, he explained.

The planning and development of the projects is an inter-institutional work that includes the participation of the White House National Climate Advisor. Ali Zaidi.

“We need our network to be better connected to accelerate the renaissance of American manufacturing and leadership in artificial intelligence. We need to make our grid more capable of bringing cheaper, cleaner energy online,” Zaidi said. “Today’s investment will reduce energy costs and strengthen grid resilience. “President Biden and Vice President Harris are seizing a critical opportunity: modernizing America’s energy infrastructure and making it stronger.”

The GRIP is funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act, but its application is not recent, since the first round was announced in October 2023, which included $3.5 billion for 58 projects in 44 states.

In August 2024, DOE announced an additional $2.2 billion for eight additional selections.

In that sense, the accumulated investments are already $7.6 billion dollars for 104 projects through the GRIP program.