Illinois Commerce Commission approves new Ameren transmission line for LaSalle County
Following approval by the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) this week, Ameren Illinois will build a new transmission line to improve grid reliability for customers operating in LaSalle County.
The project will be competitively bid out and built by Illinois-based union electric workers, and will result in extra 138 kV paths for energy to flow through the area. Such redundancies and flexibility built into the system could also reduce the frequency and duration of power outages. It will run from the Ameren Illinois substation in Oglesby, Illinois to another substation near North Utica, Illinois.
“As we work to create new pathways to bring more energy to the region, we’re also providing an economic boost to the area and keeping the construction jobs here at home,” Stephanie Thomson, project manager of the LaSalle Link Project, said. “The approval of this project is a significant milestone toward improving energy reliability for local residents and businesses.”
Ameren Illinois, which services 1.2 million electric and more than 800,000 natural gas customers in the state, won the approval after a series of informational meetings with the public and stakeholders to identify the line’s best route. As a result, construction should begin in spring 2024 and be completed by summer 2025.
