Companies will jointly develop transmission
projects in Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland to reliably serve the region's
growing power demand
Needed transmission reliability investments
will also increase the grid's resiliency and capacity to support
new generation
Projects are in the early stages of
development, with more detailed plans for permitting, regulatory
approvals and public participation expected in the coming
months
AKRON,
Ohio, Feb. 27, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Regional
grid operator PJM Interconnection has selected several electric
transmission projects that will be jointly developed by FirstEnergy
Transmission LLC, Dominion Energy and American Electric Power
Company through its Transource Energy affiliate across multiple
states within the PJM footprint.
The companies jointly proposed the projects through PJM's
Regional Transmission Expansion Plan (RTEP) Open Window process in
September 2024, and yesterday they
were awarded by the PJM Board of Managers. PJM is the regional
transmission organization that coordinates the transportation of
wholesale electricity across the 13-state region that includes
Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland.
The companies will develop the projects through the recently
formed Valley Link Transmission Company LLC joint venture. The
innovative collaboration will leverage the companies' collective
expertise and resources to deliver comprehensive and cost-effective
solutions that address the region's growing power needs.
After a lengthy review process, PJM determined the joint
venture's proposed projects, among others, best met the reliability
needs of the grid. The projects will support economic development
while ensuring every customer has the energy they rely on every
day.
"By leveraging the collective expertise of our three companies,
we have the opportunity to build robust transmission facilities
that will address documented reliability concerns on the regional
power grid," said Mark Mroczynski,
President, Transmission at FirstEnergy. "While we're in the very
early stages, we look forward to engaging with communities and
stakeholders in the months ahead to discuss the need for these
projects and listen to the ideas and concerns of our
customers."
"These projects are essential for the economic vitality of our
region, the reliability of our grid and the everyday lives of our
customers," said Ed Baine, President
of Utility Operations and Dominion Energy Virginia. "These are
comprehensive solutions needed to reliably serve the growing needs
of our customers, and we thank PJM for their thorough review."
"AEP has decades of experience with projects of the size and
scope needed to serve the unprecedented growth in energy demand,"
said Bob Bradish, Senior Vice
President, Regulated Infrastructure Investment Planning for AEP.
"This joint venture is a unique solution to addressing the needs of
our customers and ensuring long-term reliability and continued
economic growth opportunities in the region."
The selected projects include:
- Building approximately 260 miles of 765-kilovolt (kV)
transmission line and two substations between Putnam County, West Virginia, and Frederick County, Maryland.
- Building approximately 155 miles of 765-kV transmission line
and a substation between Campbell County,
Virginia, and Fauquier County, Virginia.
- Building a new substation in Caroline
County, Virginia.
The projects are in the early stages of development and do not
have a firm time frame yet for permitting, regulatory approvals and
construction. Following PJM's recent awards, the companies will
advance the development of project details, which includes
assessing potential routes and conducting thorough environmental
studies.
The companies are committed to collaborating with residents,
local governments and other stakeholders in the project communities
at every stage of the process. Community engagement is crucial for
making informed decisions that reduce or prevent potential
impacts.
In addition to the jointly developed projects, PJM selected
several other transmission projects that will be developed
individually by each of the three companies in their service
areas.
About FirstEnergy
FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE), is
dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and operational
excellence. Its electric distribution companies form one of the
nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving more than
six million customers in Ohio,
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West
Virginia, Maryland and
New York. The company's
transmission subsidiaries, which include FirstEnergy Transmission
LLC (FET), operate approximately 24,000 miles of transmission lines
that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Jointly owned
by FirstEnergy and Brookfield Super-Core Infrastructure
Partners, FET is the equity investor in Valley Link Transmission
LLC. FET owns and operates American Transmission Systems Inc.
(ATSI), Mid-Atlantic Interstate Transmission (MAIT) and
Trans-Allegheny Interstate Transmission Line Company (TrAILCo).
Follow FirstEnergy online at firstenergycorp.com and on X
@FirstEnergyCorp.
About Dominion Energy
Dominion Energy (NYSE: D),
headquartered in Richmond,
Virginia, provides regulated electricity service to 3.6
million homes and businesses in Virginia, North
Carolina, and South
Carolina, and regulated natural gas service to 500,000
customers in South Carolina. The
company is one of the nation's leading developers and
operators of regulated offshore wind and solar power and
the largest producer of carbon-free electricity in New England. The company's mission is to
provide the reliable, affordable, and increasingly clean
energy that powers its customers every day. Please
visit DominionEnergy.com to learn more.
About AEP
Our team at American Electric Power (Nasdaq:
AEP) is committed to improving our customers' lives with reliable,
affordable power. We are investing $54
billion from 2025 through 2029 to enhance service for
customers and support the growing energy needs of our communities.
Our nearly 16,000 employees operate and maintain the nation's
largest electric transmission system with 40,000 line miles, along
with more than 225,000 miles of distribution lines to deliver
energy to 5.6 million customers in 11 states. AEP also is one of
the nation's largest electricity producers with approximately
29,000 megawatts of diverse generating capacity. We are focused on
safety and operational excellence, creating value for our
stakeholders and bringing opportunity to our service territory
through economic development and community engagement. AEP
participates in the competitive transmission space through
Transource, a jointly owned transmission company with Evergy, Inc.,
headquartered in Kansas City,
Missouri.
Forward-Looking Statements: This news release includes
forward-looking statements based on information currently available
to management. Such statements are subject to certain risks and
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continuous improvement and our other strategic and financial goals,
including, but not limited to, executing Energize365, our
transmission and distribution investment plan, executing on our
rate filing strategy, controlling costs, improving credit metrics,
maintaining investment grade ratings, strengthening our balance
sheet and growing earnings; changing market conditions affecting
the measurement of certain liabilities and the value of assets held
in our pension trusts may negatively impact our forecasted growth
rate, results of operations and may also cause us to make
contributions to our pension sooner or in amounts that are larger
than currently anticipated; mitigating exposure for remedial
activities associated with retired and formerly owned electric
generation assets, including those sites impacted by the legacy
coal combustion residual rules that were finalized during 2024;
changes to environmental laws and regulations, including, but not
limited to, rules finalized by the Environmental Protection Agency
and the SEC, including those currently stayed, related to climate
change; and potential changes to such laws and regulations as a
result of the new U.S. presidential administration; changes in
customers' demand for power, including, but not limited to,
economic conditions, the impact of climate change, emerging
technology, particularly with respect to electrification and new
data centers, energy storage and distributed sources of generation;
the ability to access the public securities and other capital and
credit markets in accordance with our financial plans, the cost of
such capital and overall condition of the capital and credit
markets affecting us, including the increasing number of financial
institutions evaluating the impact of climate change on their
investment decisions, and the loss of our status as a well-known
seasoned issuer; future actions taken by credit rating agencies
that could negatively affect either our access to or terms of
financing or our financial condition and liquidity; changes in
assumptions regarding factors such as economic conditions within
our territories, the reliability of our transmission and
distribution system, generation resource planning, or the
availability of capital or other resources supporting identified
transmission and distribution investment opportunities; the
potential of non-compliance with debt covenants in our credit
facilities; the ability to comply with applicable reliability
standards and energy efficiency and peak demand reduction mandates;
human capital management challenges, including among other things,
attracting and retaining appropriately trained and qualified
employees and labor disruptions by our unionized workforce; changes
to significant accounting policies; any changes in tax laws or
regulations, including, but not limited to, the Inflation Reduction
Act of 2022, or adverse tax audit results or rulings and potential
changes to such laws and regulations as a result of the new U.S.
presidential administration; and the risks and other factors
discussed from time to time in our SEC filings. Dividends declared
from time to time on our common stock during any period may in the
aggregate vary from prior periods due to circumstances considered
by the FE Board at the time of the actual declarations. A security
rating is not a recommendation to buy or hold securities and is
subject to revision or withdrawal at any time by the assigning
rating agency. Each rating should be evaluated independently of any
other rating. These forward-looking statements are also qualified
by, and should be read together with, the risk factors included in
FirstEnergy Corp.'s Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and in FirstEnergy's other
filings with the SEC. The foregoing review of factors also should
not be construed as exhaustive. New factors emerge from time to
time, and it is not possible for management to predict all such
factors, nor assess the impact of any such factor on FirstEnergy
Corp.'s business or the extent to which any factor, or combination
of factors, may cause results to differ materially from those
contained in any forward-looking statements. FirstEnergy Corp.
expressly disclaims any obligation to update or revise, except as
required by law, any forward-looking statements contained herein or
in the information incorporated by reference as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.
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