Jersey Central Power & Light files plan to reduce power outages
Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) has developed a plan to enhance the reliability of its distribution system against severe weather to reduce the frequency and duration of power outages.
The four-year plan, filed with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU), includes about $400 million in investments beyond its regular annual investments to enhance JCP&L’s service reliability. The plan, called JCP&L Reliability Plus, includes nearly 4,000 enhancements to overhead and underground distribution lines, as well as new equipment to reduce outages. It also includes vegetation management to reduce the potential for tree damage, which is a primary cause of outages during storms.
“The special focus of this program is to limit damage during severe weather events,” Jim Fakult, president of JCP&L, said. “The new equipment, along with enhanced vegetation management, builds on our ongoing efforts to ensure customer service reliability and resiliency.”
The economic benefit to customers from these improvements is projected to be about $1.9 billion over the estimated life of the equipment installed through the program, JCP&L officials said. The monthly bill for an average residential customer will increase by about 25 cents.
JCP&L, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. serves 1.1 million customers in the New Jersey counties of Burlington, Essex, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union, and Warren.
