Project will strengthen grid and enhance
reliability for 7,000 area customers
AKRON,
Ohio, Aug. 9, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- American
Transmission Systems, Inc. (ATSI), a subsidiary of FirstEnergy
Corp. (NYSE: FE), has upgraded eight miles of two high-voltage
power lines in Lake and
Geauga counties in Ohio, stringing new wires that can handle
additional demand if other lines in the region are out of service.
The project will strengthen the regional transmission system and
enhance service reliability for 7,000 customers of The Illuminating
Company.
The two 138-kilovolt power lines share 63 transmission towers
along the eight-mile section and run from the Leroy Center
Substation in Leroy Township
through Concord Township in
Lake County and Hambden and Chardon townships in Geauga County. The new wires installed will
reduce the risk of overloads on the lines, which are now able to
carry increased power flow in the event of unplanned service
interruptions on other transmission lines.
As part of the $7 million project,
ATSI also installed new components and insulators as needed along
the route to support the wires. Helicopter crews performed the
majority of the upgrades along the eight-mile section. Helicopter
crews can perform the work faster and more efficiently than ground
crews, which require the creation of access roads for large trucks
and equipment.
The project was identified in conjunction with PJM, the electric
grid operator for FirstEnergy's service territory, as part of its
reliability planning analysis. The upgraded segment serves the
Pawnee Substation, which delivers power to approximately 7,000
customers of The Illuminating Company.
The project is part of Energizing the Future, a
multi-year initiative designed to upgrade FirstEnergy's
transmission system with advanced equipment and technologies that
will reinforce the power grid and help reduce the frequency and
duration of customer outages. Since 2014, FirstEnergy has upgraded
or replaced existing power lines, incorporated smart technology
into the grid and upgraded dozens of substations with new equipment
and enhanced security features. Through 2022, FirstEnergy had
invested more than $10 billion in the
Energizing the Future initiative.
A second phase of the project that extends an additional eight
miles to the Mayfield Substation in Chester Township, Geauga
County, is planned for 2024. This fall, ATSI also will be upgrading
two transmission lines on parallel structures in the corridor that
run 16 miles from the Leroy Center Substation to the Mayfield
Substation.
ATSI provides transmission services in Ohio and in the western portion of
Pennsylvania and owns or maintains
more than 8,100 miles of transmission lines, substations and other
facilities.
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.