The U.S. Department of Energy will be dispersing $125 million around the country to modernize power grid infrastructure and ensure power sector reliability. Mississippi is one of nine states that will benefit from a "Grid Resilience Grant."
Brent Bailey is the Public Service Commissioner for the state’s Central District, which serves counties including Hinds and Madison, as well as parts of the Delta. He says while the $12 million won’t be enough to fully resolve power grid issues, it can help customers in rural areas.
“There is a lot of people at the end of the line who feel like [they’re] always the first out [of power], last on,” he said. “That's not any situation anyone wants to be in… If certain technologies can be utilized and applied… hopefully those outage times can be greatly reduced and identified quicker.”
The grant comes after thousands of Mississippi homes were left without power in June after a string of storms rolled through the state. Bailey voiced concerns during the outages, and is hopeful the grant money will allow the state to be better prepared.
“If we do have that type of severe storm, some of the dollars could go to the weatherization of the system,” he said.“ [such as] strategic underground and certain above ground power lines in those areas that may be the most vulnerable,” he said.
The White House says the grant is also meant to develop non-wired projects and create more jobs for utility workers. This is the seventh round of Grid Resilience Grants issued by the federal government.
