WILLIAMSPORT, Md., Feb. 8, 2023
/PRNewswire/ -- Potomac Edison, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp.
(NYSE: FE), invested nearly $10
million in 2022 to complete service reliability projects
that will help enhance electric service and minimize the impact of
power outages for thousands of customers in Maryland. The company also received approval
from the Maryland Public Service Commission to complete additional
service reliability projects in 2023.
"Potomac Edison is continually investing in upgrades to our
system that help us restore service to our customers faster
following severe weather. The enhancements will also help reduce
the number of momentary and sustained power outages our customers
experience," said Linda Moss,
president of FirstEnergy's Maryland operations.
Potomac Edison completed several distribution automation
projects in 2022 that allow personnel to automatically switch
customers to an adjacent power line during an outage. By tying
customers to a second source of power, the impact of power outages
for approximately 2,950 customers in the Beallsville, Boyds and McHenry areas was minimized last year. In
2023, Potomac Edison will complete two similar projects to help
improve reliability for nearly 4,900 customers in the West Frederick, Frostburg and Finzel areas.
Additionally, Potomac Edison installed equipment called
reclosers at eight substations throughout the Frederick, Williamsport and Mt.
Airy areas last year that help protect the power lines
that deliver electricity to customers. These devices can isolate a
problem on one portion of a power line while keeping electricity
flowing through the remainder of the line, minimizing the number of
customers interrupted by outages. Potomac Edison personnel also can
operate the new reclosers remotely to assist line workers in the
field during power restoration activities.
The reclosers installed in 2022 will improve reliability for
nearly 10,000 Potomac Edison customers. In 2023, Potomac Edison
plans to install fourteen more reclosers that will improve service
for customers in Williamsport,
Cumberland, Frederick, Hancock and Oakland counties.
Lastly, each year, Potomac Edison makes a proactive effort to
replace aging underground cable with a more reliable type of cable.
In 2022, the company replaced more than 30 miles of cable,
improving reliability for individual customers and the overall
electric system. In 2023, Potomac Edison plans to replace
approximately fifty miles of older underground cable.
Potomac Edison serves about 275,000 customers in all or parts of
Allegany, Carroll, Frederick, Garrett, Howard, Montgomery, and Washington counties in Maryland and 151,000 customers in the Eastern
Panhandle of West Virginia. Follow
Potomac Edison at www.potomacedison.com, on
Twitter @PotomacEdison, and on Facebook
at www.facebook.com/PotomacEdison.
FirstEnergy is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and
operational excellence. Its 10 electric distribution companies form
one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems,
serving customers in Ohio,
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West
Virginia, Maryland and
New York. The company's
transmission subsidiaries operate approximately 24,000 miles of
transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic
regions. Follow FirstEnergy online
at www.firstenergycorp.com and on
Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp.
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SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.