Administration invests $50 million

Administration invests $50 million

STILLWATER – U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development Oklahoma State Director, Kenneth Corn, announced Monday the Department is investing $50 million to assist the Arkansas Valley Electric Cooperative Corporation expand and modernize the nation’s rural electric grid and increase grid security for LeFlore and Sequoyah Counties.

This RD investment will allow the cooperative to build and improve on 360 miles of electric line and invest in smart grid technologies. Arkansas Valley Electric Cooperative serves 10 counties in Arkansas and two in Oklahoma.

“Providing better security and strengthening our rural Oklahoma electric grid is vital to the long-term health of our rural economy,” Corn said. “Investing in Oklahoma infrastructure not only provides good-paying jobs but more importantly secures rural Oklahoma’s future for a stable and growing economy.”

In the coming months, USDA will announce additional energy infrastructure financing. The Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act provided more than $12 billion to USDA for loans and grants to expand clean energy, transform rural power production, create jobs and spur economic growth. This funding will help make energy cleaner, more reliable and more affordable.

USDA’s Electric Loan Program can help finance wind, solar and natural gas plants, as well as improvements to produce cleaner energy from coal-fired plants. Local utilities also use the loans to invest in infrastructure to deliver affordable power to their consumers.

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