Nothing lasts forever.
That’s why Indiana Michigan Power and our parent company, American Electric Power, continue to diligently update the transmission system – the backbone of the energy grid.
Steel poles are replacing wooden ones. Stronger wires are going up. New substations are being built, while others are being updated or replaced. New technology and designs make the transmission system more efficient and more resilient to outages.
In 2022, the I&M Energy Delivery team completed 36 projects, investing $337 million in enhancing the grid. Also last year, we continued moving forward, announcing 22 new projects and future improvements.
These improvements make the power system more reliable. They also prepare the communities and customers we serve for future economic development. New and growing businesses need the assurance of power. So do the additional employees who move into homes near their workplaces.
“Updating the transmission system improves reliability for our customers today, but it does more than that,” said Nick Elkins, I&M director of Customer Services and Business Development. “These improvements are designed to help our customer’s reliability today and into the future.”
“We know that businesses look for service areas where there is ample and reliable power,” he said. “These improvement projects help our communities attract businesses, which creates jobs.”
Transmission 101
High-voltage transmission lines carry large amounts of power over long distances. The transmission lines go to substations, where the voltage is reduced and distributed to your home or business.
Think of energy lines like roads. Transmission lines are the interstates and expressways, while the local distribution lines are city streets and county roads.
What We’re Doing
From South Haven, Mich., to Winchester, Ind., and dozens of locations in between, we were busy planning, building and completing major transmission projects.
Examples include:
- The Hartford (Mich.) Area Improvements Project, which includes rebuilding 33 miles in largely rural areas. We are replacing wooden poles built in the 1950s with modern steel structures and making other improvements.
Customers can learn more projects across the area by clicking on AEPtransmission.com/Indiana and AEPtransmission.com/Michigan
We regularly inform customers and the public of transmission projects while they are in the planning stages, well in advance of construction. We send postcards directly to affected property owners and inform news media of upcoming projects. We invite you and your neighbors to offer comments on the projects.
Many of the projects have options for routes, giving nearby property owners and others the opportunity to weigh in on what they believe is the best route.
Some projects involve rebuilding lines and erecting new poles or towers in the same locations where they currently exist.
Others involve new lines.
Some need new locations because homes, buildings, roads and other improvements were built years after the lines were originally constructed. In many cases, changing line locations better serves property owners, motorists and the public.
Other locations are changed because evolving demographics have changed where the power is – or is expected to be – most needed.
And some new lines and infrastructure are needed to reliably deliver the energy generated by new wind and solar power plants.
In With the New
Though nothing lasts forever, some things can last a very long time.
When the forerunners of Indiana Michigan Power began building the electric grid over a century ago, the primary goal was to turn the lights on for homes, businesses and entire communities. No one really knew how long the equipment would be operational.
Many of the original lines and poles would prove to be so strong they lasted 50, 60 … even 70 or more years. It helps that the energy grid was invented by creative visionaries, developed by smart planners and built by dedicated, hard-working professionals committed to quality.
Today, some of the equipment that still runs the grid was installed when Harry Truman was president, the Chevrolet Fleetmaster was the nation’s best-selling car and a quart of milk cost 23 cents.
We carefully study the condition of existing lines and their history of reliability. We establish priorities to first address the lines most in need of updates and areas most in need of enhanced energy availability.
All this is part of our commitment to enhancing our transmission system to better serve you.