Biden pledges $7.3 billion for rural electrification and clean energy
In the largest government funding push for rural electrification since the thirtiesPresident Joe Biden announced Monday that $7.3 billion will go to 16 electric cooperatives in 23 states to build and expand clean energy. The funds, which come from the Inflation Reduction Act and are being allocated through the Agriculture Department’s Empowering Rural America program, are intended to provide reliable electricity and create clean energy jobs.
Biden introduced the investment initiative at a stop in Westby, Wisconsinwhere he said about $580 million will go Dairyland Power Cooperative to develop solar and wind power and energy storage. Biden said the nonprofit cooperatives were specifically targeted because “they don’t have the same resources as private utilities to modernize their energy infrastructure. And for decades, they’ve been denied access to tax credits to make clean energy more affordable.”
Biden said the funding will help provide affordable electricity to more than 5 million households and create 20,000 jobs in the states selected for the funding. In a briefing on the financingThe White House said those jobs will be split between about 4,500 permanent jobs and 16,000 construction jobs. The $7.3 billion will be supplemented by an additional $5.1 billion in private sector investment, the administration said.
In addition to serving areas where electricity is scarce in the U.S., some electric cooperatives are the only way some areas have access to high-speed broadband service. The renewable energy industry has struggled to communicate the benefits of clean energy in rural communities, amid skepticism about cost savings and job creation. Meanwhile, states like California and Texas have seen the benefits of combining solar with energy storage to prevent blackouts and create enough power when coal plants go offline.
