Eight projects selected for the second round of Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships grants are located in 18 states.

Long-anticipated FERC rules require power providers to conduct 20-year-ahead plans for long-term transmission needs and give agency backstop siting authority for projects that cross grid boundaries.

Some of the technologies being developed with the grants, ranging from subsurface sensors to microtunneling robots, could have construction applications beyond grid projects.

Proposed large transmission builds in New England, four western states and two border states will negotiate funding terms with the US Energy Dept. 

Work to add higher-voltage capacity and 10,000 miles of new lines faces key issues in siting, cost allocation and regulatory tension, says transmission sector consultant Grid Strategies in Sept. 13 report. 

All nine transmission lines that deliver power to the Lake Charles, La., area were knocked out of service during the hurricane.

Billions in capital spending taking place to prepare for electrification, natural disasters

San Francisco on June 4 hired a financial advisor as it considers buying distribution assets from the beleaguered utility Pacific Gas & Electric, which filed for voluntary bankruptcy protection in January as it faced more than $30 billion in liabilities stemming from 2017 and 2018 wildfires that burned many thousands of acres and destroyed thousands of structures.