Our world is changing — from the way we work and live to the increasing frequency of extreme weather events we experience. That is why we have created a four-point plan to improve reliability in our communities and support the growing energy needs of our customers now and far in the future.
This includes trimming trees, upgrading existing infrastructure, rebuilding older sections of the grid and transitioning to a smart grid. The work is well underway throughout our communities, and you have likely seen one part, if not all, in action via our capital improvement projects.
Through 2029, we plan to invest more than $1 billion annually in capital projects to upgrade and rebuild our electric infrastructure. This work will help create a more resilient, robust power grid that results in fewer outages and shorter outage durations for customers. These projects also will help us prepare for future growth and electrification.
The multi-year projects consist of the following and more:
- Constructing, modernizing and expanding substations
- Rebuilding the poles and wires that delivers power to homes and businesses
- Strategically burying existing overhead wires where it makes sense
- Replacing aging or damaged electrical equipment with stronger utility poles, wires and cables, transformers and more
- Reconfiguring and relocating power lines
- Incorporating preventative inspections and maintenance
In communities where we’ve completed these types of enhancements, customers are experiencing a significant improvement in power reliability. The capital improvement projects, selected based on research-driven data, will benefit approximately 50 communities across the DTE service territory, with more being added as needed.
At DTE, we are dedicated to doing more to combat the impact of extreme weather and meet the ever-changing electrical needs of our customers. Read more about how we’re implementing our four-point plan at empoweringmichigan.com/reliability-improvements or see work happening in your community with our electric reliability improvements map.