Consumers Energy announced this week a proposed pilot program to bury power lines in Michigan.
According to Consumers, the program will help the company better understand how to bury power lines, and it is pending approval from the Michigan Public Service Commission.
Consumers said the pilot will how burying power lines compares with other approaches to improving service for nearly 2 million Michigan homes and businesses.
By burying power lines, they get protected from outage causes, including lightning, high winds, tornadoes, heavy snow, ice and falling tree limbs.
According to Consumers, results from other states and energy provides found burying power lines can improve resiliency by 90%
“We know burying power lines will help make the grid stronger, especially during violent storms that are hitting Michigan more frequently,” Consumers Energy Vice President of Electric Distribution Engineering Greg Salisbury said in a statement. “Historically the costs to bury lines have been too expensive, but we have driven down the cost per mile to be equivalent to above-ground hardening costs. This pilot will help us learn even more about how to bury lines in ways that keep costs as low as possible, allowing us to bury additional lines in the future.”
The program will target electrical circuits in Genesee, Livingston, Allegan, Ottawa, Montcalm and Iosco counties that often have longer power outages and in areas with dense trees.
Currently, about 15% of Consumers Energy lines are underground.
“It is important to remember burying our lines might be the right solution for some areas but not others. We will use a strategic approach and do it in the most cost-effective way for our customers. And by using a few different strategies to strengthen the grid, we will be able to deliver a brighter future for all the communities we serve,” Salisbury added in a statement.
