DEP Invests $10 Million To Support 6 Projects To Improve Electric Grid Reliability And Resiliency In 9 Counties

On March 16, the Department of Environmental Protection announced the investment of $10 million in projects at six companies to improve electric grid reliability and resiliency through the 2026 Pennsylvania Grid Resilience Grants funding. 

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:

-- DEP Awards $15+ Million In PA Electric Grid Resilience Grants To Prevent, Shorten Power Outages In Rural Electric Systems; Fall Grant Round Planned  [PaEN] 

Related Articles This Week:

-- 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]

-- DEP Invests $10 Million To Support 6 Projects To Improve Electric Grid Reliability And Resiliency In 9 Counties [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% Rate Increase Starting March 31  [PaEN]

[Posted: March 16, 2026]  PA Environment Digest