ASHLAND, Ky. (Feb. 20, 2018) – Kentucky Power is strengthening the power grid and increasing economic development opportunities in eastern Kentucky with plans for significant upgrades to the electric transmission system in Boyd County.
The EastPark Transmission Project consists of building approximately 3 miles of 138-kilovolt transmission line and a new substation to provide electric service to Braidy Industries’ planned aluminum mill facility in the EastPark Industrial Center. Once complete, the work will provide the 1,000-acre business park with a reliable and robust power source capable of handling continued customer growth.
“Transmission improvement projects such as the EastPark project represent meaningful investment in eastern Kentucky,” said Kentucky Power President and COO Matt Satterwhite. “The East Park project not only will allow Kentucky Power to meet all of Braidy’s electrical needs, but also will modernize our power delivery system to continue to provide safe and reliable electrical service to other customers in the area.”
Kentucky Power provided project details to the community and affected landowners on Tuesday evening during an open house. The community event allows the company to hear directly from landowners to help determine a proposed route for the transmission upgrade. The proposed transmission line will connect to the existing Chadwick-KES Transmission line near Kentucky Electric Steel just north of Interstate 64. From there, study segments travel to the northwest going on each side of the Champion Fastpitch Athletic Complex to an endpoint at the proposed substation in the EastPark Industrial Center.
“Getting feedback from landowners and others early in the process helps us to choose a route that best minimizes impact to the community and the environment,” Satterwhite said.
Project team members will use information gathered from landowners and the community to work toward a proposed route. Kentucky Power plans to file for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity with the Kentucky Public Service Commission this spring. Upon approval, construction is expected to start this fall and be complete by the end of 2019. Additional information, maps, a timeline and updates are posted at www.kentuckypower.com/EastPark.
Kentucky Power customers will pay only four to six percent of the project costs after the upgrade is complete. Transmission project expenses are shared among residents of several states served by grid operator PJM since multiple states benefit from such grid-strengthening projects. Since the EastPark project is still in the planning stages, costs estimates are incomplete.
Kentucky Power, with headquarters in Ashland, provides service to about 168,000 customers in 20 eastern Kentucky counties. Kentucky Power is an operating company in the American Electric Power system, one of the largest electric utilities in the U.S.
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