USDA invests in rural broadband and electricity

Mar 02, 2017

Illinois, Oklahoma and Missouri among the states receiving investments

By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing in rural broadband and electricity in various states.

When it comes to rural broadband, the USDA is loaning a total of $19.3 million to Southern Plains Cable in Oklahoma and Moultrie Independent Telephone Company in Illinois.

The Oklahoma-based company will receive a $15.3 million loan to build a fiber-optic broadband network to serve the communities of Anadarko, Verden and Chickasha.

The Illinois-based organization will receive a $4 million loan to make upgrades to its fiber service.

The loans can help rural communities access better jobs, education, health care and business services, Roger Glendenning, Rural Development Acting Deputy Under Secretary, said in a Feb. 27 release.

When it comes to rural electric infrastructure, projects throughout nine states will receive USDA loans,including Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.

The loans total $202 million – $14.7 million of which will be used to implement Smart Grid technology, which helps utilities manage power needs and supply.

The loans will help create jobs and grow the rural economy, Glendenning said in a Feb. 28 release.

The loans include:

$8 million for Twin Valley Electric Cooperative in Kansas to build 44 miles of line.
$10.2 million for Missouri’s Gascosage Electric Cooperative to build 50 miles of line and make system upgrades.
$25 million for Hancock-Wood Electric Cooperative in Ohio to build and improve 191 miles of line and perform system upgrades.
$44 million for South Carolina’s Aiken Electric Cooperative to build 342 miles of line. And another $9 million to be used for Smart Grid projects.

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