READING, Pa., Dec. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- FirstEnergy Pennsylvania Electric Company (FE PA), a FirstEnergy Corp. FE subsidiary doing business as Met-Ed in southeastern Pennsylvania, is building a new substation off bustling Route 422 in South Annville Township that will supply electricity to new, massive warehouse facilities in a growing industrial complex.
New distribution lines will link the substation to the local electric network, enhancing service reliability for more than 2,100 Met-Ed customers in Annville, South Annville Township and Palmyra where electrical load growth is on the rise. When completed, the project will offer a backup power feed that will help keep the lights on for nearby customers if wires or equipment on their regular line are damaged or need to be taken out of service.
"Our new substation will provide the critical infrastructure necessary to energize an enormous shipping hub in the busy motor freight corridor encompassing Interstates 78 and 81 and the Pennsylvania Turnpike. It will also provide operational flexibility for our local electric grid to better serve our residential and business customers in these fast-growing communities," said John Hawkins, FirstEnergy's President, Pennsylvania.
Construction of the substation started in spring 2024 and is expected to be completed by early 2025.
Met-Ed substation crews have installed steel structures, circuit breakers, electrical cables and other substation equipment. Delivery of the 69-kilovolt (kV)-to-13.2-kV transformer - the heart of the substation - is expected in December. The transformer will measure 13.5-feet tall by 20-feet wide and weigh more than 100,000 pounds.
Two short power lines will exit the substation with plans to expand those lines and build a third power line from the substation in future phases. One line will serve the 1.1-million-square-foot Eagle Point Logistics Center next to it while another supplies a new facility across Killinger Road at Clear Springs Logistics Park.
In parallel with this work, contractors are constructing a new transmission line attached to steel poles standing between 45 to70 feet tall which supply power from existing transmission lines into this newly constructed area under Energize365—a multi-year program focused on delivering smarter grids meeting today's demands alongside tomorrow’s challenges through planned investments worth $26 billion spanning until year-end twenty-eight twenty-eight accommodating EVs electrification homes businesses clean energy sources beyond current reliability targets met exceeding them all along way forward!