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Wyoming’s Powder River Energy Corp. secures $23.5M for renewable energy project

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CASPER, Wyo. — Powder River Energy Corporation has been awarded $23.5 million by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The funding, announced by Acting State Director Janice Blare, comes from the Powering Affordable Clean Energy program, established through the Inflation Reduction Act.

Sundance-based PRECorp will use the funds to construct a solar facility and battery energy storage system, a company press release states. The project, located in rural Wyoming, will boast nearly 1.2 megawatts of renewable energy generation capacity and 5 MW of energy storage. Over 2,100 advanced solar panels, which track the sun’s path throughout the day, will be installed on PRECorp property.

The energy storage system will allow for the storage and release of electrical energy to reduce wholesale power supply costs for PRECorp’s members in Campbell, Crook, Johnson, Sheridan and Weston counties, as well as improve reliability for its members near the project site. The project will generate enough energy annually to serve an estimated 1,800 households. PRECorp’s PACE application was selected for 20% loan forgiveness.

“In just two years, the New ERA and PACE programs have created dozens of new partnerships with rural electric cooperatives and communities that will reduce pollution, create jobs and make clean energy more affordable for millions of rural Americans,” USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack said. “These investments we’re making today will continue to support the health, prosperity and well-being of rural Americans for generations to come.”

The USDA has now allocated over $1.6 billion in partially forgivable loans for similar clean energy projects across the nation.

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