At DTE Energy, we’re dedicated to ensuring the lights stay on for our customers, especially during extreme weather. We have a four-point plan to improve electric reliability, including trimming trees, accelerating our transition to a smart grid, rebuilding older sections of the grid and upgrading existing infrastructure. As part of this plan, we’re investing more than $21 million to improve reliability, safety and prevent outages for nearly 7,000 customers in the Claytown, Michigan-Martin and Springwells neighborhoods of Detroit, as well as Southeast Dearborn.
We have been making critical upgrades at the electric substation that delivers power to these areas of Detroit and Dearborn. The work includes upgrading, reconfiguring and modernizing the substation to better serve our customers.
“This project is important because it will provide improved reliability to our customers relatively quickly,” Chad Rowe, senior capital project manager, Distribution Operations, said. “Although people may not see us working directly in their community, these substation upgrades are vital to ensuring customers in both Detroit and Dearborn have the safe, reliable power, rain or shine.”
The substation, which is located on the border of Detroit and Dearborn, has experienced flooding caused by extreme weather, resulting in some past reliability issues for residents and businesses. Although DTE has placed generators in the area and made temporary repairs to the system to restore power to customers, these new upgrades will be a more permanent fix. The upgrades will help ensure we’re able to continue to deliver reliable power, especially during periods of heavy rain.
Short power outages and partial road closures will be necessary to complete the work. We will continue to notify customers in the area if work affects them.
To learn more about reliability improvement work in your neighborhood or our four-point plan, visit empoweringmichigan.com/reliability-improvements.