The projects will prevent power outages, provide more reliability for emergency services, businesses, and residents and are funded by the US Department of Energy.
20,000 electric customers in Cambria, Crawford, Erie, Indiana, Montgomery, Perry, Schuylkill Susquehanna, and Westmoreland counties will benefit from these investments.
This year’s $10 million PA GRG awards will leverage a total $3 million awardee cost share.
“Now more than ever we need to build infrastructure that keeps our power grid reliable and mitigates challenges such as climate change-driven weather events, population growth, and aging infrastructure,” said DEP Secretary Jessica Shirley. “The Grid Resilience Grants provide important funding that brings more energy jobs, more investment in our communities, and a more resilient and reliable electric grid to Pennsylvanians.”
Frequent and extended outages also impact Pennsylvanian’s businesses, health care, emergency response, and utility services.
The PA GRG funding helps DEP prioritize smart investments to increase the resilience and reliability of our electric transmission and distribution systems.
The work will be accomplished by over 40 energy sector job types including: electronic and general technicians, systems and electrical engineers, linemen, journeymen, and apprentices.
Activities in this round of the PA GRG grant include installing 100 pieces of cutting-edge smart grid equipment to provide protection and control via enhanced system monitoring to detect and prevent power outages.
Grants were awarded to:
-- REA Energy Cooperative, $1,500,000 award: The rural distribution system will be upgraded with over 70 smart grid technology equipment that will reduce outages to 9,000 rural customers. This project will decrease time to restore power and provide remote outage detection capabilities. Cambria, Indiana, and Westmoreland counties.
-- Northwestern Rural Electric Cooperative, $4,680,655 award: Northwestern will connect two substations with high-voltage power lines to allow for a more continuous flow of electricity from these substations to reduce the number of outages caused by disruptive events. This connection will reduce the number of outages for the area by 85 percent. Erie and Crawford counties.
-- Borough of Duncannon, $507,840 award: The Borough will implement smart grid technology to isolate its system and add a connection point to loop their distribution area. This investment will reduce outages by 25 percent. Perry County.
-- Borough of Schuylkill Haven, $994,746 award: The borough will purchase an Advanced Metering Infrastructure and Supervisory Control Data Acquisition system (SCADA), providing data instantly to the borough. This will reduce response time to outages and provide resiliency to the community. Schuylkill County.
-- Claverack Rural Electric Cooperative, $2,193,767 award: The rural electric cooperative will install a 1.5 MW battery energy system to the substation that supplies the county 911 center and other facilities around the I-81 corridor to reduce outages. The cooperative experienced several events in 2024 that resulted in outages to critical facilities. This project aims to reduce outages by 44 percent in the worst performing areas. Susquehanna County.
-- Borough of Hatfield, $355,945, award: The borough will replace 56 outdated utility poles. This project will reduce maintenance and improve resiliency for the entire borough while using environmentally friendly materials. Montgomery County.
The PA GRG Program is funded under the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Grid Resilience State/Tribal Formula Grant Program.
This is PA GRG’s second round of funded projects. All awards are pending U.S. Department of Energy’s confirmation.
For more information, visit DEP’s Pennsylvania Grid Resilience Grant Program webpage.
Click Here for DEP’s announcement.
For more information on environmental programs in Pennsylvania, visit DEP’s website. Submit Environmental Complaints; Click Here to sign up for DEP’s newsletter; sign up for DEP’s eNotice; Like DEP on Facebook, Follow DEP on Twitter and visit DEP’s YouTube Channel.
Resource Link:
PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:
-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - March 14 to 20 - Conventional Well Owners Failed To Comply With Orders To Plug Wells, Restore Drilling Sites; Stop Gas From Bubbling Out Of The Ground [PaEN]
-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - March 21 [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On Chapter 105 Permit For 5-Mile Long Expand Operating LLC Water Pipeline To Support Shale Gas Development In Auburn Twp., Susquehanna County [PaEN]
-- DEP Issued Chapter 105 Permit For Homer City Generation LP A.I. Data Center Campus Natural Gas Power Plant Site In Indiana County [PaEN]
-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Approved 22 Shale Gas Well Pad Water Use General Permits In February; 54 In 2026 [PaEN]
-- DEP Posted 64 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In March 21 PA Bulletin [PaEN]
-- DEP Invites Comments On A Chapter 105 Permit For The Limerick 67 MW PECO Energy Transmission Line Crossing The Schuylkill River In Chester, Montgomery Counties [PaEN]
Related Articles This Week:
-- DEP To Tighten Residual Waste Coproduct Regulations That Allow Unrestricted Disposal Of Conventional Oil & Gas Wastewater By Dumping It On Public Roads [PaEN]
-- The Allegheny Front: Allegheny County Health Dept. To Make Recommendations On How To Better Protect Residents From Health Impacts Of Shale Gas Development [PaEN]
-- The Allegheny Front: DEP Proposes Shell Petrochemical Plant Air Permit With Higher Emission Limits In Beaver County [PaEN]
-- Gov. Shapiro Joins Other States In Lawsuit Against EPA Over Repeal Of 2009 Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding [PaEN]
-- LancasterOnline.com Guest Essay: Despite EPA’s Decision To Repeal The Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding - You Can’t Fool Mother Nature - By Richard D. Clark, Professor of Atmospheric Science Emeritus, Millersville University [PaEN]
-- Physicians For Social Responsibility-PA Establishes Scientific Advisory Board To Advise The Group On Scientific Issues [PaEN]
-- PA House Committee Hears How Virtual Power Plants, Advanced Transmission Line Technologies Allow Us To Quickly Get More Out Of Our Energy Infrastructure In Less Time, Without Huge Investments Or Delays [PaEN]
-- PennFuture Calls For A Statewide Pause On A.I. Data Center Development Until Lawmakers Can Adopt Strict Policies To Site These Facilities Properly [PaEN]
-- DEP Invests $10 Million To Support 6 Projects To Improve Electric Grid Reliability And Resiliency In 9 Counties [PaEN]
-- Mon Valley Initiative, PA Solar Center Announce RFP For Qualified Solar Developers [PaEN]
-- Green Building Alliance To Hold Free Virtual Green Professional Operations & Maintenance Certification Training For PreK-12 School Facilities Teams April 29 – May 1; Technical Assistance Available [PaEN]
-- PUC: Deadly West Reading Chocolate Factory Explosion Prompts PUC Safety Complaint Against UGI Proposing $2,576,627 In Penalties [PaEN]
-- PUC Schedules 10 Hearings On Proposed UGI Utilities 8.05% Natural Gas Distribution Rate Increase Starting March 30 [PaEN]
-- PUC Sets Hearings On Proposed National Fuel Gas 7.4% Natural Gas Distribution Rate Increase Starting March 31 [PaEN]
-- DCED Invests $1.4 Million To Expand Natural Gas Service To Customers In Bradford, Somerset County [PaEN]
-- PA Senate Republicans Pass Bill To Protect The Right Of Pennsylvanians To Drive Diesel And Gasoline Powered Vehicles; Average PA Price Of Gasoline Rose 82 Cents To $3.93/Gallon Since Feb. 27 [PaEN]
NewsClips:
-- Post-Gazette: President’s Spokesperson Announces $17 Billion South Mon Natural Gas Power Plant To Produce 4.3 GW Of Power In SW PA [No Details Available, Fetterman, McCormick Have No Information]
-- NextEra Energy Receives Approval From President For Up To 10 GW Of Natural Gas Power Generation, Including 4.3 GW Plant In SW PA [No Details On How Much Power Will Be Available To Anyone Other Than Data Centers]
-- Post-Gazette: PA Awaits Information About New 4.3 GW Natural Gas Power Plant In SW PA: ‘Will Play A Critical Role In Meeting The Rapidly Growing Electricity Demand’ [Code Words For Data Centers]
-- Wilkes-Barre Times-Leader/AP: President Urges Congress To ‘Preempt State A.I. Laws’ That He Views As Too Burdensome
-- WPXI: Beaver County Shell Petrochemical Plant Seeking Air Quality Permit, Residents Express Concerns
-- WTAE: Shell Petrochemical Plant Wastewater Treatment Plan Raises Environmental Concerns In Beaver County
-- CapitolWire: Pennsylvania Scraps RGGI Carbon Market, Races To Build More Natural Gas Power Plants [For A.I. Data Centers]
-- WESA - Rachel McDevitt: Taylor Allderdice High School Students In Pittsburgh Are Raising $5,000 To Fund A Well Done Foundation Project To Plug A Conventional Oil & Gas Well To Reduce Methane Emissions
-- PA Capital-Star: Pain Of Soaring Gasoline, Diesel, Heating Oil, Propane Prices Compounded By Electricity, Natural Gas Increases Across Pennsylvania
-- PUC Schedules 10 Hearings On Proposed UGI Utilities 8.05% Natural Gas Distribution Rate Increase Starting March 30 [PaEN]
-- PUC Sets Hearings On Proposed National Fuel Gas 7.4% Natural Gas Distribution Rate Increase Starting March 31 [PaEN]
-- Scranton Times: PPL Utilities: A.I. Data Centers Are Poised To Consume More Electricity Than Northeast PA Can Deliver [PDF of Article]
-- WHYY - Susan Phillips: Precedent-Setting PPL Utility Rate Proposal Would Protect Residential Electricity Customers From A.I. Data Center Costs
-- Utility Dive: North American Electric Reliability Corp: January’s Winter Storm Fern Was ‘Classic Near-Miss’ For US Electric Grid As Reliability Risks Are Risking
-- Wilkes-Barre Times-Leader/AP: Energy Fallout From President’s War On Iran Signals A Global Wake-Up Call For Renewable Energy
-- Bloomberg TV: As Iran War Continues, Natural Gas Prices Soar; How The Market For Natural Gas Is Being Upended By The War
-- Bloomberg: Attacks On Qatar LNG Natural Gas Facilities Make Worst Nightmare A Reality Leaving Buyers Scrambling For Supplies [American Customers Must Now Compete For Their Own US Gas As Prices Spike]
-- Bloomberg: Oil And Natural Gas Prices Jump As Strikes On Gulf Facilities Escalate Threatening Long-Term Damage
-- Food & Water Watch Blog: President’s War Against Iran Exposes The Lie Of How ‘Energy Independence’ Based On Oil & Natural Gas Will Lower Prices For Consumers - Prices Are Unbreakably Linked To International Markets As War Price Spikes Again Show
-- Inside Climate News: Iran War Shows That Doubling Down On Oil/Natural Gas Is ‘Delusional,’ UN Climate Chief Says
[Posted: March 16, 2026] PA Environment Digest
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