Press Release
☷DOE Announces $34 Million to Improve the Reliability Resiliency and Security of America s Power Grid
U.S. Department of Energy ( By Press Release office)
Jan 18,2024
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The US Department of Energy ( DOE ) has announced $34 million for 12 projects across 11 states to modernize America ' s aging power grid . The projects aim to develop cost - effective and safe undergrounding technologies , which will help upgrade and expand the nation ' s grid infrastructure . This initiative , known as the Grid Overhaul with Proactive , High - speed Undergrounding for Reliability , Resilience , and Security ( GOPHURRS ) program , will lower costs , reduce inefficiencies , and mitigate disruptions caused by extreme weather events . It also aligns with President Biden ' s goal of a 100% clean electrical grid by 2035 . Secretary of Energy Jennifer M . Granholm emphasized the importance of modernizing the power grid to support a clean energy future , lower energy costs , and enhance national security . The US power distribution system , consisting of millions of line - miles and power poles , is susceptible to weather - related damage and contributes to frequent power outages . Undergrounding power lines is a proven method to improve system reliability , as underground systems are less affected by weather events . Managed by DOE ' s Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy ( ARPA - E ) , the selected teams , including small and large businesses , national labs , and universities , will develop technologies to reduce costs , increase speed , and enhance the safety of undergrounding operations . The selected projects include the following: Arizona State University ( Tempe , AZ ) will develop an underground construction tool that will spread electrical cables and medium electrical gatherings simultaneous Reducing the schedule affects the tasks of renewing and withdrawing the channel . ( Prize amount: 4 , 263 , 082 dollars ) GE Vernova Advanced Research ( Niskayuna , NY ) will develop a robotic worm tunnel building that will dig and install the canal and cables for the underground distribution lines in one step . The GE system will simulate the natural movement of the Earth ' s worms and the roots of trees to install 1000 feet of cables and canal in two hours with unparalleled elasticity . The tool can spread from a standard pickup truck and will remove the cost , complexity and disable the surface compared to traditional methods . ( Prize amount: 3 , 674 , 998 dollars ) MelNi ( Twin Falls , ID ) will redesign and develop medium - voltage power cable paste groups that require lower steps and coordination connections to significantly reduce human errors and enhance the reliability of electrical power distribution systems . Suggested MelNi groups can be installed in 10 - 15 minutes , which is 3 - 4 times faster than traditional groups , and will reduce failure and errors of up to 90 % by eliminating the steps of installation and potential human errors . ( Award amount: 2 , 000 , 000 dollars ) Oceanit ( Honolulu , HI ) will develop a surface sensor system . Underground . The system will use the interpretation of machine learning and high - resolution imaging capabilities to provide in the actual time of the drilling . ( Prize amount: 3 , 276 , 836 dollars ) The National Laboratory in the northwest of the Pacific ( Retsland , Washington ) will develop a system of artificial intelligence to process geophysical survey data to digital twin - a model of a physical model in the real world - and the increase of reality in order to define current and facilities Current and other surface obstacles before installing underground energy distribution lines . An analysis , visualization and reporting usually takes weeks or months after obtaining data , but the proposed system may lead to results within minutes , which provides its utmost in the actual time to determine the surface and determine the benefit , which will lead to cost savings and accelerate power generation lines . Prysmian Cables and Systems USA in Highland Heights , KY is going to develop a cool new machine that splices power cables underground . This machine will drastically reduce the number of network failures caused by splicing and make the work safer for the crews . They got a big award of $3 , 750 , 000 for this project . If you want more info on this and other projects , check out the ARPA - E website . ARPA - E is all about pushing clean energy technologies that will make America ' s energy security better . They ' re committed to keeping the US ahead in developing and using advanced clean energy tech . But just because they picked these projects doesn ' t mean they ' re definitely going to fund them . They still have to go through a negotiation process with the applicants , and they could cancel or change things for any reason .
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