Peters & Stabenow Applaud $150 Million in Federal Funding to Strengthen Michigan’s Power Grid Against Bad Weather

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senators Gary Peters (MI) and Debbie Stabenow (MI) today applauded the announcement of a $150 million Department of Energy (DOE) investment which will strengthen the state’s power grid against extreme weather. This funding is being granted to DTE Energy, Consumers Energy, and American Electric Power through the DOE’s Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program. Peters and Stabenow wrote letters to the DOE supporting the grant application for each project. Additional information about each grant can be found below:

• DTE Energy is receiving $22.9 million to develop and build two sets of adaptive networked microgrids which will be installed at O’Shea Solar Park in Detroit. These microgrids will provide key insights into opportunities for load management, peak shaving and faster restoration for customers in urban areas.
• Consumers Energy is being awarded $100 million make upgrades to circuit systems on federally-designated Disadvantaged Communities and mitigate the impact of outages in the region.
• American Electric Power is receiving $27.8 million to deploy an Advanced Distribution Management System (ADMS) across its entire grid and enhance grid flexibility and protect its system against threats of extreme weather.

“As severe weather events become more common across Michigan, consumers are experiencing a growing number of electrical service disruptions,” said Senator Peters. “I was proud to support these critical investments, which will make our electrical grid more resilient and protect consumers when weather events impact our state.”

“Michigan residents know firsthand how more frequent extreme weather is taking a toll on our state’s electrical grid. These critical investments will help ensure Michigan households can count on reliable, affordable power no matter the forecast. These projects will not only help address the impact of the climate crisis in our homes, but will create more good-paying jobs,” said Senator Stabenow.

The GRIP grant program invests in projects that improve resilience of our power systems and ensure the reliability of the power sector’s infrastructure. More information about the GRIP grant program can be found here.

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