← Videos · Energy & Permitting

Wright Announces the SPARK Transmission Initiative in Allentown, Pennsylvania, Sep. 24, 2026

September 24, 2026 · U.S. Department of Energy · 0:13:49

Embedded from the source channel — never re-uploaded. Watch on YouTube

What happened

Energy Secretary Chris Wright announced the SPARK Initiative in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the Department of Energy’s upload of the September 24, 2026 event, hosted by PPL Electric Utilities President Christine Martin. SPARK — Speed to Power through Accelerated Reconductoring and other Key Advanced Transmission Technology Upgrades — will provide $1.9 billion toward 31 projects across 26 states, expected to produce more than 23 gigawatts of additional electricity capacity, according to the Department of Energy.

The hometown award: PPL Electric Utilities was selected to receive up to $71.5 million for its Montour Grid Resilience and Advanced Reconductoring Project, rebuilding approximately 29.3 miles of existing 230-kilovolt transmission line, according to PPL. “These investments will get more out of the infrastructure we already have, move more electricity across the grid, and help deliver affordable, reliable and secure power,” Wright said at the event.

Why it matters

SPARK is the program the rest of Wright’s fall grid stops plug into — the Lynchburg award three weeks later runs on the same logic of reconductoring and dynamic line ratings on existing corridors, at a national scale of 31 projects rather than one.

Scoreboard watch

Scoreboard watch: the SPARK selections as announced September 24, 2026 — $1.9 billion, 31 projects, 26 states, more than 23 gigawatts of expected added capacity, all as stated by the Department of Energy; selections announced, final awards still to be executed. Flagged for the scoreboard editor; no entry is published from this page.

Sources: U.S. Department of Energy, “Secretary Wright Announces SPARK Initiative in Allentown, Pennsylvania” (official upload, embedded above); PPL Electric Utilities announcement, September 24, 2026; Associated Press reporting of the SPARK announcement.