PSE&G Wants $1.7 Billion to Keep Substations High and Dry

by Tom Johnson, NJSpotlight.com

If the state wants to avert extensive power outages in the future, most experts agree that utility substations cannot flood during storms like Hurricane Sandy. Flooding occurred repeatedly at these facilities, leaving hundreds of thousands of customers without electricity when some stations were under up to six feet of water.

The $1.7 billion question is what will it cost to protect them.

That is the rough estimate Public Service Electric & Gas projects as the price for protecting 91 of its substations over the next decade, a cost that has come under scrutiny and raised concern among regulators and participants in a pending rate case before the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities.

Utility switching and substations are used to move electricity from high-voltage transmission lines to distribution wires to bring power to homes and businesses.

NJ Spotlight is an issue-driven news website that provides critical insight to New Jersey’s communities and businesses. It is non-partisan, independent, policy-centered and community-minded.