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Written by John Egan for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--As the November elections draw near, presidential and vice-presidential candidate visits to battleground states such as Wisconsin are a near-daily occurrence. The candidates typically come for cheering crowds, and sometimes they leave with checks from fundraisers. President Joe Biden, however, who is not running for re-election, recently visited Wisconsin to drop off a check--a nearly $573 million grant and loan package to support clean energy development in rural America.
The financial package, funded by the Inflation Reduction Act and administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Empowering Rural America (New ERA) program, was presented September 5 to Wisconsin's Dairyland Power Cooperative (La Crosse, Wisconsin). It was the first finalized award under the New ERA program, but it won't be the last: The USDA has selected another 15 rural electric cooperatives to receive funding under this program. Those cooperatives are finalizing the terms of their financial packages.
All told, about $7.3 billion in federal loans and grants announced September 5 will be augmented by about $29 billion in private-sector funds to construct non-emitting power generation, battery energy storage systems (BESS) and new transmission & distribution (T&D) infrastructure in rural America. In all, the investments will benefit an estimated five million rural Americans across 23 states. The investments aim to provide cleaner electricity at lower costs to an estimated one-in-five people who live outside urban and suburban areas.
"Under the Biden-Harris Administration, we are supporting a more prosperous future for rural communities by speeding up the transition to clean energy while at the same time keeping monthly bills low and investing in the American workforce with new jobs and apprenticeships," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said September 5. "One in five rural Americans will benefit from these clean energy investments, thanks to partnerships with rural electric cooperatives like Dairyland. Put simply, this is rural power, for rural America."
"Dairyland Power Cooperative is honored to receive this New ERA award, which provides Dairyland and our member cooperatives with a tremendous opportunity to continue making vital investments in essential clean energy resources," said Dairyland Power Cooperative President and Chief Executive Officer Brent Ridge. "Through a carefully cultivated portfolio of renewable energy projects, New ERA will drive substantial carbon reduction across the Dairyland system, facilitate new economic growth and job creation, promote environmental stewardship and lower energy costs for rural and agricultural communities."
Dairyland provides wholesale electricity to member cooperatives in Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois and Minnesota. Those cooperatives, in turn, provide retail electricity to about 290,000 members in those four states.
The Wisconsin-based cooperative plans to use the nearly $573 million from the federal government, along with about $1.5 billion in private investment, to develop energy projects totaling 1,080 megawatts (MW), including eight power purchase agreements, four solar installations and four wind power installations across Dairyland's service territory.
"The Inflation Reduction Act makes the largest investment in rural electrification since FDR and the New Deal in the 1930s," said John Podesta, senior advisor to the president for international climate policy. "Today's awards will bring clean, affordable, reliable power to rural Americans all across our nation."
The New ERA funds, with matching private-sector funds, will support cooperatives that want to:
Rural electric cooperatives were born during the New Deal when the Rural Electrification Act (REA) was enacted in 1936. Prior to that, many rural communities lacked reliable or affordable electricity. Over the ensuing 88 years, using a combination of grants and loans, the REA helped closed the "electricity gap" between rural America and cities and suburbs.
Today, there are about 900 rural electric cooperatives across America serving 42 million people in 48 states, including 92% of counties deemed to be in "persistent poverty," according to the cooperative's trade group, the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) (Arlington, Virginia).
The goal of the Agriculture Department's New ERA program is to decarbonize the electricity supply for rural America, enhance grid resilience, lower electric costs and improve electric reliability, all of which will enhance the quality of rural life.
While the loan and grant package to Dairyland was the first award under the New ERA programs, 15 other rural electric cooperatives serving about 20 states are in the process of getting their paperwork approved. Those cooperatives, and the states they serve, are:
Click on the image at right to see a map of the 23 states that will receive New ERA funding from the Department of Agriculture.
The New ERA program is authorized to make up to $9.7 billion of loans and grants. Two further rounds of funding announcements are expected soon.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) platform helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
The financial package, funded by the Inflation Reduction Act and administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Empowering Rural America (New ERA) program, was presented September 5 to Wisconsin's Dairyland Power Cooperative (La Crosse, Wisconsin). It was the first finalized award under the New ERA program, but it won't be the last: The USDA has selected another 15 rural electric cooperatives to receive funding under this program. Those cooperatives are finalizing the terms of their financial packages.
All told, about $7.3 billion in federal loans and grants announced September 5 will be augmented by about $29 billion in private-sector funds to construct non-emitting power generation, battery energy storage systems (BESS) and new transmission & distribution (T&D) infrastructure in rural America. In all, the investments will benefit an estimated five million rural Americans across 23 states. The investments aim to provide cleaner electricity at lower costs to an estimated one-in-five people who live outside urban and suburban areas.
"Under the Biden-Harris Administration, we are supporting a more prosperous future for rural communities by speeding up the transition to clean energy while at the same time keeping monthly bills low and investing in the American workforce with new jobs and apprenticeships," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said September 5. "One in five rural Americans will benefit from these clean energy investments, thanks to partnerships with rural electric cooperatives like Dairyland. Put simply, this is rural power, for rural America."
"Dairyland Power Cooperative is honored to receive this New ERA award, which provides Dairyland and our member cooperatives with a tremendous opportunity to continue making vital investments in essential clean energy resources," said Dairyland Power Cooperative President and Chief Executive Officer Brent Ridge. "Through a carefully cultivated portfolio of renewable energy projects, New ERA will drive substantial carbon reduction across the Dairyland system, facilitate new economic growth and job creation, promote environmental stewardship and lower energy costs for rural and agricultural communities."
Dairyland provides wholesale electricity to member cooperatives in Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois and Minnesota. Those cooperatives, in turn, provide retail electricity to about 290,000 members in those four states.
The Wisconsin-based cooperative plans to use the nearly $573 million from the federal government, along with about $1.5 billion in private investment, to develop energy projects totaling 1,080 megawatts (MW), including eight power purchase agreements, four solar installations and four wind power installations across Dairyland's service territory.
"The Inflation Reduction Act makes the largest investment in rural electrification since FDR and the New Deal in the 1930s," said John Podesta, senior advisor to the president for international climate policy. "Today's awards will bring clean, affordable, reliable power to rural Americans all across our nation."
The New ERA funds, with matching private-sector funds, will support cooperatives that want to:
- Build or buy more than 10 gigawatts (GW) of clean electricity--including approximately 3,723 MW of wind, about 4,733 MW of solar, approximately 804 MW of nuclear and roughly 357 MW of hydropower.
- Build 1,892 megawatt-hours of battery storage, which increases grid reliability and significantly reduces outage times for local farms, businesses and homes.
- Make investments in transmission, substation upgrades and distributed energy resource management software.
Rural electric cooperatives were born during the New Deal when the Rural Electrification Act (REA) was enacted in 1936. Prior to that, many rural communities lacked reliable or affordable electricity. Over the ensuing 88 years, using a combination of grants and loans, the REA helped closed the "electricity gap" between rural America and cities and suburbs.
Today, there are about 900 rural electric cooperatives across America serving 42 million people in 48 states, including 92% of counties deemed to be in "persistent poverty," according to the cooperative's trade group, the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) (Arlington, Virginia).
The goal of the Agriculture Department's New ERA program is to decarbonize the electricity supply for rural America, enhance grid resilience, lower electric costs and improve electric reliability, all of which will enhance the quality of rural life.
While the loan and grant package to Dairyland was the first award under the New ERA programs, 15 other rural electric cooperatives serving about 20 states are in the process of getting their paperwork approved. Those cooperatives, and the states they serve, are:
- Allegheny Electric Cooperative Incorporated, Pennsylvania and New Jersey
- Arizona Electric Power Cooperative Incorporated, Arizona, California, Nevada, and New Mexico
- Basin Electric Power Cooperative, Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota
- Buckeye Power Incorporated, Ohio
- CORE Electric Cooperative, Colorado
- East Kentucky Power Cooperative, Kentucky
- Golden Valley Electric Association, Alaska
- Great River Energy, Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin
- Hoosier Energy, Indiana and Michigan
- Minnkota Power Cooperative, North Dakota and Minnesota
- San Miguel Electric Cooperative Incorporated, Texas
- Seminole Electric Cooperative Incorporated, Florida
- Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association Incorporated, Colorado, New Mexico, Nebraska and Wyoming
- United Power, Colorado
- Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative, Michigan
The New ERA program is authorized to make up to $9.7 billion of loans and grants. Two further rounds of funding announcements are expected soon.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) platform helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
