Energy Department: The U.S. energy grid needs $15 billion in upgrades
Severe weather is the leading cause of power disruptions, costing the U.S. economy from $18 billion to $33 billion a year, and climate change will only make it worse, a White House review on energy infrastructure concludes.
The report, released Tuesday by the Energy Department, recommends investments in the electric grid to protect it from the elements as well as potential physical and cyber-attacks. It contains more than 50 recommendations to improve pipelines, power lines, waterways, railroads and other energy facilities.
“Modernizing the electricity grid is critical,” Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said in an interview Monday with Bloomberg News reporters and editors in Washington. The report, he said, has “a strong focus on resilience of infrastructure in the face of many threats, including extreme weather.”
