By Grace Jacobson / News Director

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Xcel Energy announced Wednesday it’s been selected for a $100 million grant to help reduce the threat of wildfires and strengthen the grid for extreme weather.

The Department of Energy award is funded through the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships program.

It will support a range of projects to enhance the grid’s resiliency such as fires and severe storms.

As climate conditions have changed, Xcel says the environmental impacts to the power grid have grown more severe and frequent.

Along with Minnesota, the projects will be based in Wisconsin, Colorado, New Mexico and Texas.

They are expected to span five years with completion by late 2028.