United Power completes USDA grant agreement to get green energy grant from USDA

December 31, 2024

United Power will get $262 million in grants for the U.S. Department of Agriculture that will boost clean energy and jobs and bring down taxes, the energy provider said.

United Power submitted its formal agreement letter to receive $262 million in new grant funding ) for its Rural Utilities Service in the new program, “Empowering Rural Americans” (ERA)”, according to a Dec. 30 news release.

“These grant funds will be used to offset a portion of the costs United Power has and will incur for seven different power purchase agreements,” said Mark A. Gabriel, United Power’s President and CEO. “The projects represent new, clean energy sources that have already significantly reduced our greenhouse gas emissions since the exit from our former wholesale power supplier on May 1. Additionally, the projects are bringing tax dollars and jobs to each area where the systems are located.”

United Power announced in September that it would be awarded $262 million in grant funding to help with the cost of the new generation clean energy portfolio, which will purchase more than 760 megawatts of renewable resources for United Power by 2030. According to officials, the USDA completed its underwriting to award United Power.

United Power submitted a Community Benefits Plan in November that is required to receive funds from The Empower Rural American. The plan calls for investing $1 million in several approved community projects and programs to improve the lives of United Power members and its communities.

Those include programs to help people with fixed incomes with electric costs, support farmers and ranchers, and fund the new ERA project facilities. The Community Benefit funding also will award four Lineworkers scholarships of $7,500 each to train students for certifications from local Colorado colleges. 

“Receiving this scholarship means a lot to me,” said Kate Killinen, one of the United Power lineworker scholarship recipients. “It means that I can go through the Mesa Lineworker Program without going into any school debt and focus more on my studies rather than how to get the money I need to get through it. Receiving this scholarship will help my long-term career goals of working for an electric cooperative by helping me get through an amazing program that is the foundation of my whole career.”

According to officials, United Power plans to distribute Community Benefits Plan grant funding over the next 10 years. United Power investments have increased because the cooperative has already saved through its numerous annual community support. 

“As a cooperative, supporting our communities and investing in education have always been key directives in our annual planning,” said Gabriel. “We have been awarding scholarships, supporting education in our industry, and providing leadership and investment dollars to assistance organizations that serve our members for decades. Now we will be able to do even more.”

To learn more about United Power’s long-term energy vision for the future, read visit Cooperative Roadmap at www.unitedpower.com/roadmap.

 

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