PCCA Journal|2
nd
Quarter 2015
37
RUS NEWS
USDA Announces Funding
for Rural Electric Projects
U
SDA Secretary Tom Vilsack
on April 21 announced fund-
ing for six rural electric in-
frastructure projects, includ-
ing three in North Carolina that will use
solar energy to generate electricity for
rural communities. Vilsack announced
$72 million in electric infrastructure
investments.
The announcement included a $20
million loan to help Montgomery Solar
Owner, LLC, in Cornelius, N.C., build a
20 megawatt solar farm. Chocowinity So-
lar, LLC and Cirrus Solar, LLC (both also
based in Cornelius) will each receive $5
million loans to build 5 megawatt solar
farms. Combined, the Chocowinity, Cir-
rus, and Montgomery solar projects will
generate 30 megawatts of power.
The announcement also included a
$17 million loan to Rolling Hills Electric
Cooperative, Inc. in Kansas to build
or improve 197 miles of transmission
and distribution line and make other
system improvements. The loan includes
$315,000 for smart grid projects.
Broad River Electric Cooperative,
which serves rural customers in North
and South Carolina, will receive an $18
million loan to build or improve 138
miles of line and make other system im-
provements. The loan includes $347,360
for smart grid projects.
In Vermont, the Washington Electric
Cooperative, Inc. has been selected to
receive a $7 million loan to build or
improve 46 miles of line and make other
system improvements. The loan includes
$185,330 for smart grid projects.
The USDA announcement coincided
with the Obama administration’s first-
ever Quadrennial Energy Review (QER),
a multiyear roadmap for U.S. energy
policy. The report presents a set of find-
ings and recommendations focused on
the federal role, and organized around
the high-level goals of energy security,
economic competitiveness, and environ-
mental responsibility.
The QER focuses on energy transmis-
sion, storage, and distribution infrastruc-
ture—the networks of pipelines, wires,
storage, waterways, railroads, and other
facilities that form the backbone of our
energy system. The QER identifies op-
portunities these systems provide for a
clean and secure energy future, as well
as some growing and potential vulner-
abilities of these systems. The report also
proposes policy recommendations and
investments to replace, protect, expand,
and modernize TS&D infrastructure
where appropriate.
Learn more about the Quadrennial En-
ergy Review at www.rd.usda.gov/files/
RD-USDA-RUS%20QER.pdf.
USDA Announces Funding for
Broadband Projects in Three States
A
griculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in March
announced that USDA has funded three rural
telecommunications infrastructure projects that
will improve broadband service in portions of
rural Arkansas, Iowa, and New Mexico.
Southwest Arkansas Telephone will receive a $25 million
loan to upgrade portions of a fiber network and convert the
remaining portions of a copper system to fiber to improve
service for subscribers.
In New Mexico, Mescalero Apache Telecom will receive a
$5.4 million loan to upgrade portions of its system and pro-
vide fiber service to approximately 50 percent of its territory.
This is the first loan that USDA’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS)
has made under the Substantially Underserved Trust Area
provisions of the 2008 Farm Bill. These provisions amended
the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to make funding avail-
able to areas that historically have had difficulty receiving
federal assistance. RUS has held a series of outreach work-
shops around the country in the past year to help Tribal com-
munities access RUS broadband programs.
Iowa’s Minburn Communications has been selected to
receive a $4.7 million loan to upgrade its copper network to
fiber and to provide subscribers with voice, broadband, and
video service.
USDA is providing a total of $35 million in broadband
infrastructure loans in this announcement. In 2014, the Rural
Utilities Service awarded $228 million to improve telecommu-
nications service for 83,000 rural customers.
Continued on page 38