More than $30 million in grant funding will help Springfield City Utilities replace aging natural gas infrastructure in northwest Springfield, provide emergency power generation at the Blackman Water Treatment Plant and upgrade cybersecurity equipment.
The bulk of the funding — a $20 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration — will allow CU to replace older natural gas mains.
CU was awarded $10 million for the gas line project — which is focused in the Springfield City Council Zone 1 area — in 2023. Groundbreaking for the project is expected to take place later this summer, according to a news release from CU.
“The safety and reliability of the natural gas system is critical, and the ability to replace mains without additional costs for our customers is an economic benefit for the entire community,” Gary Gibson, president and CEO of CU, said in the release.
CU was also awarded a $9.6 million Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities Grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide backup power to the Blackman Water Treatment Plant in the event of a catastrophic power failure.
An $810,000 Cybersecurity Grant from the American Public Power Association and the U.S. Department of Energy will fund the purchase of cybersecurity equipment and upgrades to existing cybersecurity equipment City Utilities uses.
