CHICAGO (WMBD) – Illinois will get a $16 million federal grant to help small municipal and co-op utilities improve power grid reliability and help mitigate the impacts of extreme weather, the governor’s office announced Thursday.
The grant comes from the Grid Resilience State and Tribal Formula Grant Program which is administered by the U.S. Department of Energy. Illinois was among the 11 states, two territories, and 20 Tribal nations that were selected for the program’s eighth round of funding last week.
“This investment in our state’s power grid will propel our clean energy objectives, uplift our most disadvantaged communities, and support our clean energy workforce to build a more sustainable Illinois for generations to come, said Gov. JB Pritzker.
In the next few months, the state’s Finance Authority/Climate Bank will seek competitive bids for projects that focus on reliability and resiliency improvements in disadvantaged communities that are at risk from climate change impacts.
The grant dollars are also intended to support equity by increasing access and opportunities for underserved residents and businesses, and support communities and small utilities in grid resiliency planning and investment.
For more information on the program, read the DOE’s recent award announcement and their Illinois fact sheet.