New Transformer Installed and Energized in Downtown Bradford Substation

Rhea-AI Summary

FirstEnergy's Pennsylvania Electric Company (Penelec) has installed and energized a new transformer at a Bradford substation, enhancing service reliability for over 1,000 customers, including the University of Pittsburgh's Bradford campus. The 40,000-pound transformer replaced a faulty unit and features forced-air cooling fans for increased capacity. This installation is part of Energize365, a multi-year grid evolution program with planned investments of $26 billion between 2024-2028. Additionally, Penelec completed a forestry project in the Bradford area, removing approximately 1,400 hazardous trees and utilizing helicopter-mounted saws for efficient tree trimming along power lines.

Positive

• Installation of new transformer enhances service reliability for over 1,000 customers
• Part of $26 billion Energize365 grid evolution program (2024-2028)
• New transformer offers increased capacity with forced-air cooling system
• Completion of significant forestry project improving service reliability

Negative

• Previous transformer failure required temporary mobile substation solution

Insights

Infrastructure & Utilities Expert

This transformer upgrade represents a meaningful infrastructure enhancement for FirstEnergy's grid reliability. The new unit's forced-air cooling system provides increased capacity over the previous natural-air model, directly benefiting 1,000+ customers including critical facilities like the University of Pittsburgh's Bradford campus and local industrial operations.

The investment aligns with FirstEnergy's ambitious Energize365 program, which has allocated $26 billion for grid modernization between 2024-2028. This systematic approach to infrastructure upgrades, combined with proactive maintenance like the recent forestry project removing 1,400 hazardous trees, demonstrates a comprehensive strategy to improve service reliability and prepare for increased electrification demands.

While this specific project's cost isn't disclosed, it represents the type of critical infrastructure investment needed to maintain grid stability and support future growth. The successful implementation and two-month operational track record indicates positive execution of FirstEnergy's capital deployment strategy.

New Penelec equipment to enhance electric service reliability for more than 1,000 customers

ERIE, Pa., Oct. 24, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- FirstEnergy Pennsylvania Electric Company (FE PA), a FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) subsidiary doing business as Penelec in northwestern Pennsylvania, recently energized a new transformer at a substation in Bradford to enhance electric service reliability for more than 1,000 customers in Bradford and Bradford Township, including the University of Pittsburgh's Bradford campus.

The substation's previous transformer experienced an issue last fall and could not be repaired. A mobile substation provided temporary service to customers until a new transformer could be located, transported and installed to help ensure long-term grid stability.

John Hawkins, FirstEnergy President, Pennsylvania: "Resolving this critical issue was a top priority so we could provide our customers – including industrial facilities and the local Pitt campus – with reliable electric service. We engineered a solution, identified a spare transformer capable of handling the electrical load and installed the unit. I am pleased to report the new transformer has been in service for more than two months and operating as designed."

The new transformer measures 7-feet by-4-feet, stands 11 feet tall and weighs nearly 40,000 pounds. A large crane hoisted the unit over the substation fence and onto a concrete foundation. Electricians installed new electric cables in the substation to power the transformer's forced-air cooling fans, which provide more capacity than the former transformer that relied on natural air circulation to cool. Access into the substation was also enhanced to prevent utility trucks from blocking the street when using the front gate.

With the new transformer in place and operating properly, the mobile substation has been disconnected and is ready for deployment to where it is needed next.

Photos of a crane removing the old transformer from the Bradford West Substation near the University of Pittsburgh's Bradford campus and the aerial saw are available for download on Flickr.

The work is part of Energize365, a multi-year grid evolution program focused on transmission and distribution investments that will deliver the power FirstEnergy's customers depend on today while also meeting the challenges of tomorrow. With planned investments of $26 billion between 2024 and 2028, the program will create a smarter, more secure grid that will meet and exceed reliability targets and accommodate electric vehicles, the electrification of homes and businesses and clean energy sources.

Earlier this year, Penelec completed a significant forestry project to improve electric service reliability for customers in the Bradford area, some of whom had experienced outages caused by off-right-of-way trees during several powerful winter windstorms. About 40 tree-trimming contractors worked for two months along three power lines to take down roughly 1,400 dead, diseased or leaning trees that posed a danger to poles and wires.

As part of that effort, contractor Aerial Solutions used a helicopter saw to trim trees along a 13-mile power line running through rugged, heavily wooded terrain from a substation in Lewis Run which supplies much of the Bradford region with electricity. The aerial saw looks like a large chainsaw suspended from a helicopter and is the ideal tool to cleanly remove limbs and branches along power line corridors that are inaccessible for bucket trucks or in environmentally sensitive areas. This fast, safe and efficient method of trimming covers more area in a day than ground crews might complete in a week.      

Penelec serves approximately 597,000 customers within 17,600 square miles of northern and central Pennsylvania and western New York. Follow Penelec on X @Penelec and on Facebook at facebook.com/PenelecElectric.

FirstEnergy is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and operational excellence. Its electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving more than six million 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. Visit FirstEnergy online at firstenergycorp.com and follow FirstEnergy on X @FirstEnergyCorp.

 

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SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.

FAQ

What is the cost of FirstEnergy's (FE) Energize365 program investment between 2024-2028?

FirstEnergy (FE) plans to invest $26 billion in the Energize365 program between 2024 and 2028.

How many customers will benefit from FirstEnergy's (FE) new Bradford substation transformer?

The new transformer will enhance electric service reliability for more than 1,000 customers in Bradford and Bradford Township, including the University of Pittsburgh's Bradford campus.

How many trees did Penelec (FE) remove in their recent Bradford area forestry project?

Penelec removed approximately 1,400 dead, diseased, or leaning trees that posed a danger to poles and wires in the Bradford area.