BENTON HARBOR, Mich., – Indiana Michigan Power (I&M) is committed to providing safe and reliable energy service to its customers. That’s why I&M is Powering the Next reliability upgrades to the electric transmission network in Berrien County starting late 2022 and concluding in late 2023.
I&M will invest more than $17 million in the Benton Harbor and St. Joseph area to enhance service for customers. The Benton Harbor-Fair Plan Transmission Line Rebuild Project will rebuild a high-voltage electric line connecting the Main Street Substation in Benton Harbor to the Hickory Creek Substation in St. Joseph.
The project also includes:
- Upgrading approximately 7 miles of 34.5–kilovolt (kV) transmission line to 69 kV standards.
- Rebuilding some sections of the high voltage transmission line in I&M’s existing right-of-way and re-routing other sections.
- Upgrading wooden power poles, installed in the 1950’s, to steel monopoles.
The rebuilding of this high-voltage line will enhance and help ensure safe and reliable electric services for decades to come, reduce the need for frequent maintenance, help reduce outage duration times, improve the line’s overall performance and promote economic growth in this portion of Berrien County.
I&M received feedback and input from landowners and stakeholders to determine the final line route to minimize impacts to the community and environment.
For more information, including a detailed line route map, please visit www.IndianaMichiganPower.com/BentonHarbor.
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ABOUT INDIANA MICHIGAN POWER: Indiana Michigan Power (I&M) is headquartered in Fort Wayne, and its approximately 2,100 employees serve more than 600,000 customers. More than 85% of its energy delivered in 2020 was emission-free. I&M has at its availability various sources of generation including 2,278 MW of nuclear generation in Michigan, 450 MW of purchased wind generation from Indiana, more than 22 MW of hydro generation in both states, nearly 35 MW of large-scale solar generation in both states, and 2,620 MW of coal-fueled generation in Indiana.
ABOUT AMERICAN ELECTRIC POWER: American Electric Power, based in Columbus, Ohio, is focused on building a smarter energy infrastructure and delivering new technologies and custom energy solutions to our customers. AEP’s approximately 16,800 employees operate and maintain the nation’s largest electricity transmission system and more than 223,000 miles of distribution lines to efficiently deliver safe, reliable power to nearly 5.5 million regulated customers in 11 states. AEP also is one of the nation’s largest electricity producers with approximately 30,000 megawatts of diverse generating capacity, including more than 5,500 megawatts of renewable energy. AEP’s family of companies includes utilities AEP Ohio, AEP Texas, Appalachian Power (in Virginia and West Virginia), AEP Appalachian Power (in Tennessee), Indiana Michigan Power, Kentucky Power, Public Service Company of Oklahoma, and Southwestern Electric Power Company (in Arkansas, Louisiana, east Texas and the Texas Panhandle). AEP also owns AEP Energy, AEP Energy Partners, AEP OnSite Partners, and AEP Renewables, which provide innovative competitive energy solutions nationwide. For more information, visit aep.com.