FirstEnergy plans to replace electric transmission lines through eight western Pennsylvania counties, including Erie County.
In Erie County, the company plans to replace lines from the Erie South substation on Old French Road in Summit Township through Greene, Waterford, LeBouef and Union townships.
The 20.3-mile project is part of a larger project to replace transmission lines along a 150-mile path through Erie, Crawford, Venango, Clarion, Armstrong, Jefferson, Indiana and Westmoreland counties.
Mid-Atlantic Interstate Transmission is finalizing the design for the project, said FirstEnergy spokeswoman Lauren Siburkis. Akron-based Mid-Atlantic Interstate Transmission is a subsidiary of FirstEnergy.
FirstEnergy’s Erie South substation, on Old French Road north of Interstate 90 in Summit Township, is shown. The company plans to rebuild transmission lines in eight western Pennsylvania counties, beginning from the substation.
FirstEnergy also is the parent company of Penelec, which provides electric service locally.
MAIT also is applying for permits and other approvals required for construction, including a stormwater permit from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
The proposed project
Existing transmission lines would be replaced with new lines carried by steel “monopoles,” according to the description of the Erie South-Piney project, the name given to proposed project in Erie, Crawford, Venango and Clarion counties.
The single-pole structures would replace traditional towers along an 82-mile route from the Erie South substation to a substation in Piney Township in Clarion County.
The new transmission line would be built alongside the existing line, which would continue to carry electricity until the new infrastructure is in place and operational. Older structures and wires would then be removed.
Power transmission lines are shown near Old French Road in Summit Township.
Placing the poles and lines along the existing transmission corridor would reduce impacts on property owners, communities and sensitive environmental or cultural areas, according to Mid-Atlantic Interstate Transmission findings.
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The company will negotiate with property owners for additional land needed for right-of-way and temporary access roads and to clear vegetation for construction.
No cost estimate for the project has been provided.
The project is part of FirstEnergy’s Energizing the Future initiative to modernize the power grid to reduce service outages, lower maintenance costs and meet current and future electricity needs.
The utility has replaced more than 700 miles of transmission lines since the project began in 2014.
The project timeline
FirstEnergy originally anticipated applying for Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission approval for the transmission line project in 2023.
The company now plans to apply to the PUC this summer, Siburkis said.
Construction would begin once the project is approved. It would take about four years to complete construction through Erie, Crawford, Venango and Clarion counties, according to preliminary estimates.
Contact Valerie Myers at vmyers@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: FirstEnergy to replace Erie transmission lines to upgrade power grid