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FirstEnergy invests in Ohio Edison upgrades
YOUNGSTOWN
The Mahoning Valley will see its share of electric-system upgrades this year as FirstEnergy Corp. plans to spend more than $475 million on projects designed to enhance service reliability and decrease outages in its Ohio Edison service area.
The investment nearly doubles what the company spent last year on infrastructure upgrades in the territory of its Ohio Edison subsidiary.
Of the $475 million total investment, $344 million will go toward transmission-related projects.
Mark Durbin, a FirstEnergy spokesman, said the move reflects a 2012 decision to close power plants in Northeast Ohio due to the high cost of converting those systems to meet new environmental standards.
The heavy investment in transmission projects will mitigate the effect on customers and will make service more reliable, he added.
FirstEnergy also expects to deliver more electricity in eastern Ohio in the coming years.
“The infrastructure projects are designed to help maintain our system on a day-to-day basis to benefit customers now while helping prepare our system for future load growth,” Randall A. Frame, regional president of Ohio Edison, said in a statement.
The company anticipates increased shale-drilling activity in eastern Ohio counties to account for much of that growth.
“That part of Ohio is looking like it’s going to need more and more electricity as the Utica and Marcellus shales grow,” Durbin said.
FirstEnergy is moving ahead with a $4.8 million transmission line tap that will connect to the Lowellville-Sammis transmission line near Boardman and carry 138 kilovolts of electricity 3.5 miles to Pennant Midstream’s Hickory Bend cryogenic gas-processing plant near New Middletown.
The project got fast-track approval from the Ohio Power Siting Board on Feb. 8, and FirstEnergy expects to begin construction soon. The company said the transmission line will be operational by the end of November.
Increased shale activity also prompted FirstEnergy to replace power wires in Columbiana, Trumbull and Stark counties with newer versions, capable of carrying more electricity, Durbin said. All told, that project should cost $3 million.
Other planned Valley projects are a part of the company’s ongoing maintenance and upgrade efforts.
Youngstown, Warren, Girard and Niles are part of a large group of communities that will benefit from an allocation of $18.6 million for FirstEnergy’s program aimed at trimming tree branches near power lines.
The company also will direct $6.8 million in Ohio Edison’s entire service area for pole inspection. The company said more than 59,000 utility poles will be inspected this year, and 2,000 likely will be replaced.
Additionally, FirstEnergy will spend $1.6 million on new equipment in Mahoning, Trumbull and Portage counties that will allow breakers to be reactivated remotely, instead of manually, after they shut off.
Once all the projects are online, FirstEnergy will share its spending information with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, which will review the report and adjust the rates customers pay.
But any additional charges would be phased in over a period of 30 years, “so the effect to rates will be very small,” Durbin said.