A new substation is coming to Van Buren Township, and that means more reliable power. Constructing new substations is part of our four-point plan to improve reliability for our customers. The plan also includes trimming trees, upgrading existing infrastructure and accelerating our transition to a smart grid.
Since 2021, DTE has been working to rebuild the overhead and underground infrastructure that will deliver power to residents and businesses in the community. The work, which is a $35 million investment in Van Buren Township, includes:
- Constructing a new electric substation.
- Replacing about a mile and a half of overhead and underground wires, cable, conduit and electrical equipment that deliver power to Van Buren Township.
- Installing new, stronger utility poles that can better withstand extreme weather.
- Trimming trees growing close to power lines. Fallen trees are responsible for 50% of the time our customers spend without power. Trees can fall onto electrical wires and cause outages for our customers during extreme weather, as well as on blue sky days.
- Installing smart grid devices, which will help improve safety and reliability by rerouting power to many customers during an outage or wire down event.
Customer benefits
Rebuilding the power delivery system will help keep the lights on for customers, especially during extreme weather. It also will increase the grid’s safety and capacity to deliver reliable power to even more homes and businesses. The additional capacity also means we’ll be able to better support clean energy solutions like electric vehicles.
Rebuild progress
The work to rebuild the poles and overhead wires and electrical distribution equipment in Van Buren Township is complete. Crews have also finished installing the underground piping, called conduit, that will house the new below-ground cables.
We are currently pulling the new cables into the conduit throughout the area. The underground work will be done next year after the substation is fully constructed.
We’re also making great progress on the new substation construction, which began this past summer. Crews recently finished the below ground work at the substation. This included installing underground electrical equipment and conduit (conduit is the piping that protects underground wires), foundations, manholes, stormwater management systems and more. Crews will soon begin installing electrical equipment above ground.
All the work is expected to be completed in 2024. At this time, we will switch customers over to the new power delivery system, and they will be served more reliable power from the new substation.
Stay informed on this project and other work happening in your neighborhood on empoweringmichigan.com/reliability-improvements.