Dive Summary:

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that rural electric utilities in 18 states will get loan guarantees to help fund smart grid upgrades, including improvements to electric lines and transmission facilities.
• The guarantees will help utilities make almost $29 million in smart projects possible as a part of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack's goal to provide funding for $250 million in smart grid technologies.
• USDA funding recipients will include Clearwater Power Company, Whitewater Valley Rural Electric Membership Corporation and Southside Electric Cooperative.

From the article:

To further improvements to electric lines and transmission and reduce peak electric loads by deploying smart grid technologies, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack has issued loan guarantees to rural electric utilities across the country.

USDA Rural Utilities Administrator Jonathan Adelstein, on behalf of Vilsack, made the announcement while visiting the offices of Crewe, Va.-based Southside Electric Cooperative (SEC), one of the recipients. ...