The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s State Energy Office and Surry-Yadkin Electric Membership Corp. have launched a $5.9 million grid modernization project onJULY 7 aimed at improving power reliability, resilience and energy efficiency in rural communities across four northern North Carolina counties.
The Foothills Resiliency Project is designed to reduce power outages, strengthen the electric system against severe weather and increase affordability for residents in Stokes, Surry, Yadkin and Wilkes counties.
Officials including DEQ Secretary Reid Wilson, State Energy Office Director Julie Woosley, SYEMC Executive Vice President and General Manager Greg Puckett, SYEMC Assistant General Manager Bryon Kennedy and U.S. Department of Energy Office of Electricity Assistant Secretary Katie Jereza gathered at SYEMC’s Double Creek Substation to mark the start of the project.
“The Foothills Resiliency Project will bring more energy capacity and resiliency to Surry-Yadkin EMC’s members and provide opportunities for economic growth,” Wilson said. “The planned upgrades will save their members money, ensure they have reliable power and provide many with much needed high-speed internet access.”
DEQ awarded SYEMC $4.5 million last year for the project through the DOE’s Resilience of the Electric Grid Formula Grants for States and Tribes. SYEMC is providing nearly $1.5 million in matching funds.
The project will modernize 80-year-old infrastructure, much of it original equipment from the 1940s, through one transmission upgrade and three distribution upgrades. SYEMC will update conductors, support structures, cabling and 180 poles to meet modern standards.
The upgrades are expected to reduce weather-related outages by about 35 percent while improving electricity delivery capacity. Officials said the project will also support cost savings, workforce development, access to reliable energy and future economic development.
The project will also include the installation of fiber-optic cable to expand high-speed internet access for member-owners in rural communities in Stokes County. The broadband component aligns with Gov. Josh Stein’s efforts to expand rural broadband capacity across North Carolina.
Surry-Yadkin EMC, a not-for-profit Touchstone Energy cooperative founded in 1940, serves more than 28,600 meters across Forsyth, Stokes, Surry, Wilkes and Yadkin counties.
