DTE Energy, Van Buren Township, customers kick off construction on new substation
DTE Energy, Van Buren Township officials and customers came together to kick off construction on a new electrical substation. The new substation, which is scheduled to be complete by June 2024, will help deliver more reliable power to residents and businesses in Van Buren Township. It also is part of DTE’s four-point plan to improve reliability for our customers, including trimming trees, rebuilding older sections of the grid, upgrading existing infrastructure and accelerating our transition to smart grid technology.
“We’re proud to work closely with the township to bring safer, more reliable power to this community,” Rich Pulley, Distribution Operations project manager, said. “This work and investment will not only provide more reliable power for customers, but it also will support the area’s growth, allow for clean energy solutions like electric vehicles and a more electrified future.”
Crews began rebuilding the overhead and underground infrastructure that delivers power to the community since 2021 — this includes new utility poles, wires, transformer and other electrical equipment.
“The work was necessary to ensure the community has a modern system that can safely and reliably deliver power from the new substation,” Aditya Sharma, Distribution Operations senior engineer, said. “The new equipment is stronger, so it also can better withstand the increasingly extreme weather.”
Over the past year, DTE completed the following:
- Removed and replaced approximately a mile and a half of overhead and underground wires, conduit, transformers and other electrical equipment.
- Installed 35 new, stronger utility poles.
- Trimmed a mile and a half of trees. Trimming trees growing close to power lines clears space for new equipment and improves electric reliability for customers.
The entire project represents more than $35 million in investment and is part of DTE’s four-point plan to improve reliability. To keep up with the substation construction or to learn more about work happening in your neighborhood as part of our four-point plan, visit empoweringmichigan.com/reliability-improvements.
