(Albuquerque, NM) – PNM has been selected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to receive funding through its SPARK initiative, a program designed to strengthen the nation's electric grid, improve reliability and help meet growing energy needs while minimizing costs for customers.
PNM's project, Operational Resilience & Balanced Intelligent Transmission (ORBIT), was selected to receive up to $29.4 million in federal funding as part of a project totaling approximately $65.8 million.
The project includes upgrades to transmission lines, installation of advanced grid technology and improvements to transmission structures. Together, these investments will help PNM move more electricity across the existing grid, improve system reliability and better serve customers as energy demand continues to grow.
"PNM is making significant infrastructure investments to modernize and strengthen our grid while continuing to power New Mexico with reliable, affordable and clean energy for decades to come," said Omni Warner, PNM's Senior Vice President of Operations. "This funding supports the advanced technologies needed to help meet tomorrow's demands with expanded capacity and will provide a greater value at a lower cost for our customers."
The DOE announced 31 projects across 26 states through the SPARK initiative. The selected projects will focus on improving transmission infrastructure and using advanced technologies to increase grid capacity, reduce congestion and strengthen electric reliability.
For PNM customers, the ORBIT project will help modernize parts of the transmission system, increase operational flexibility and support a stronger, more resilient grid for the future.
