On October 18, 2023, the U.S. Department of Energy and the Grid Deployment Office (GDO) announced up to nearly $3.46 billion to strengthen electric grid resilience and reliability across America via the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program. This investment, funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the largest single direct investment in critical grid infrastructure ever, will help ensure communities across the nation have a reliable grid that is prepared for extreme weather while also delivering affordable, clean energy.
In this webinar, GDO provided a look at the 58 projects selected for award negotiations across the three GRIP funding mechanisms: Grid Resilience Utility and Industry Formula Grants, Smart Grid Grants Program and the Grid Innovation Program. Attendees learned about trends in the applications; strengths of selected projects; anticipated outcomes to increase grid resilience and reliability; and anticipated community benefits, including the strengthening and growth of union engagement and the creation of good-paying jobs. In addition to spotlighting specific projects, the webinar examined lessons learned from this funding opportunity and its respective awards to help prepare attendees for future funding opportunities.