Community meetings will be held November 2, 3, 9 & 10
Rutland, VT – Vermont Electric Power Company (VELCO), is inviting neighbors in Georgia, St. Albans, Swanton and Highgate, and anyone interested, to one or more community meetings about a proposed electric transmission project to improve grid reliability and unlock additional local renewable energy generation. Four community meetings to discuss the project will be held at the following dates and times:
The community meetings provide a forum to learn all aspects of interest about the project including the new line’s purpose, proposed design, and work timeline. The VELCO project team will be available to answer questions and listen to community input. Interested participants should RSVP on the project website at www.velco.com/fclu or call 802-770-6381.
As the planner, builder, operator and manager of Vermont’s high-voltage electric transmission system, it is VELCO’s responsibility to ensure grid safety, reliability, and efficiency. A routine inspection of VELCO’s Georgia-to-Highgate line revealed that 146 of its 212 wooden transmission structures, 60 percent of which have been in place since 1958, are in need of replacement in order to maintain safe and reliable grid operations.
The emerging project, referred to as the Franklin County Line Upgrade Project, seeks to rebuild VELCO’s Georgia-to-Highgate electric transmission line by replacing deteriorating two-pole wood structures with more resilient single-pole steel structures. Once the new structures are installed and the conductor (or wire) is energized, the old structures will be removed. Beyond reliability improvements, the proposed Franklin County Line Upgrade Project proposal will also improve the capacity of this transmission line to help deliver increased benefits such as enabling additional in-state renewable generation.
VELCO is owned by 17 local electric utilities and a public benefits corporation, the Vermont Low Income Trust for Electricity. We are a for-profit company with a cooperative revenue structure that benefits every grid-connected customer in the state.
For more information about the project visit www.velco.com/fclu.
