Spending on US electric distribution systems rose $20 billion since 1996
Major U.S. electric utilities have increased spending on electric distribution systems from $31 billion to $51 billion annually since 1996, according to data collected by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).
That 54 percent increase in the past 20 years is similar to the gains that have been seen in transmission investment. Annual spending in customer expenses and operations and maintenance activities have also seen slight increases in the same period, the FERC report said. For the distribution system spending, it is mainly in older, more populated systems — spending is affected by the number of customers served, the amount of electricity sold, peak load amounts and number of miles of electric distribution wire installed. The system is designed to decrease voltage from high-power lines and delivering electricity to homes and businesses.
In 2015, the U.S. Department of Energy found that 70 percent of power transformers and transmission lines were 25 years or older, and 60 percent of circuit breakers were 30 years or older. This leads to poles, wires, and transformers requiring replacements and upgrades to maintain, and investment in poles, wires, devices, and fixtures has risen by 69 percent accordingly in the past decade. Investments in smart meter upgrades also have more than doubled in the past decade.
