Construction is set to begin soon on a $6 million project to strengthen the electric grid in Stokes, Surry, Yadkin and Wilkes counties.

Officials say crew members will replace wooden utility poles with steel and upgrade cabling as part of the Foothills Resiliency Project.

Reid Wilson, the secretary of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, says the improvements will significantly increase reliability and power capacity.

“Which means there's opportunities for economic growth and development in rural communities," he said. "It helps to have sufficient electricity capacity to be able to attract businesses to a place.”

The project is funded by a federal grid resilience grant administered by the state energy office.

Officials say it will take four to five years to complete.