FirstEnergy Pennsylvania Electric Company announced Monday that the company is building a new substation off Route 422 in South Annville Township.
The new substation will supply electricity to new, massive warehouse facilities in a growing industrial complex, according to officials. 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.
When completed, officials said the project will offer a backup power feed that will help keep the lights on for nearby customers if wires, or equipment on the 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,” John Hawkins, FirstEnergy’s President, Pennsylvania, said in a release Dec. 9. “It will also provide operational flexibility for our local electric grid to better serve our residential and business customers in these fast-growing communities.”
FirstEnergy Pennsylvania Electric Company announced Monday that the company is building a new substation off Route 422 in South Annville Township.
Construction of the substation started in spring 2024 and is expected to be completed by early 2025, according to officials. Met-Ed substation crews have installed steel structures, circuit breakers, electrical cables and other substation equipment at the site.
Delivery of the 69-kilovolt -to-13.2-kilovolt transformer 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 the future,” officials said in the release. “One line will serve the 1.1-million-square-foot Eagle Point Logistics Center next to the substation. The second line will supply a new 1 million-square-foot facility directly across Killinger Road from the substation, the first of three warehouses planned for the Clear Springs Logistics Park.”
Along with the substation work, contractors are constructing a new 69-kilovolt transmission line to supply the new substation with power from an existing transmission line. The line will be attached to 16 steel poles standing 45 to 70 ft. tall.
Met-Ed serves approximately 592,000 customers within 3,300 square miles of eastern and southeastern Pennsylvania.
Matthew Toth is a reporter for the Lebanon Daily News. Reach him at mtoth@ldnews.com or on X at @DAMattToth.
This article originally appeared on Lebanon Daily News: Met-Ed: New substation being installed in South Annville Twp