Grant Funds Boost Grid Resiliency

Victory Electric trustees, staff and employees stay informed about trends affecting the electric utility industry and seek innovative ways to meet our current and future energy needs. The cooperative prioritizes decisions that align with the interests of the local communities we serve while providing reliable, affordable energy to the region.

Researching and applying for grants is one strategy we use to reach that goal. Grant funding allows us to avoid long-term debt and its associated interest expense. This helps the cooperative save money and maintain lower rates for our members. 

In 2024, Victory Electric was approved for a grid resiliency grant to improve infrastructure in Dodge City. The U.S. Department of Energy, the Kansas Corporation Commission and the Build Kansas Fund are jointly investing over $2.1 million in this project, which involves the installation of approximately 225 TripSaver devices on single-phase taps throughout the Dodge City area.

Devices will reduce outages 

Up to 80% of the faults on a power system are temporary problems caused by weather, wildlife or vegetation. A fuse is a single-use device that protects a section of power line and prevents the outage from affecting many other services upstream. When a problem on the line occurs and blows a fuse, the line loses power until a worker is able to travel to the location and replace it. 

A TripSaver device acts as a programmable smart fuse that protects the system from faults and prevents longer outages. If a problem occurs on a line with a TripSaver installed, the device will de-energize the line for a brief period of time, then re-energize it. This resolves the temporary fault and keeps the power flowing, and members experience a blink in power rather than an outage.

TripSaver devices have been shown to reduce the total number and length of outages. Victory Electric anticipates a decrease in outages with these devices, which will improve infrastructure resiliency and reliability, especially in south Dodge City. The devices will be especially useful when trees get into power lines or high winds cause lines to slap together. In addition to the improvement in Dodge City’s quality of electric service, the grant-funded resiliency project will reduce the overall cost associated with repairing outages by decreasing the number of service calls required to investigate a single-phase outage and/or replace a blown fuse.

Project deployment begins soon

Installation of the first batch of TripSaver devices will begin soon. Victory Electric estimates the project will be completed by fall 2028. The installation will be completed in stages and include several structural replacements, further increasing resiliency throughout the project area. We have been working Sunflower Electric Power Corporation for cost analysis and other research to determine the best device placement, equipment coordination and optimal programming settings. 

We’re excited about this resiliency grant and how the project will benefit our member-owners and the Dodge City region. The project and the funds awarded will improve the resilience of our local energy infrastructure, enabling us to provide a more reliable and stable system for the entire community. 

Resilient electrical systems recover more quickly from disruptions that might diminish the quality or continuity of electricity supply. Improving grid resiliency ensures that the communities Victory Electric serves will remain powered when problems occur. It also boosts the economic stability of regions by preventing prolonged power outages that disrupt businesses. Electric service improvements also increase the quality of life for Dodge City residents and the greater southwest Kansas region.