West Penn Power Places New Line in Service to Enhance Reliability of Southwestern Pennsylvania Transmission Network

GREENSBURG, Pa., Aug. 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- West Penn Power, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE), announced today that it has energized a new 138-kilovolt (kV) transmission line designed to strengthen its regional transmission network, accommodate future load growth and help maintain reliable electric service for customers in Greene County, Pa.

The 14-mile transmission line connects a substation near Kirby, Pa., with a substation in Monongalia County, W. Va.  Both substations were expanded and reconfigured to accommodate the new line.  While the majority of the line is located in the West Penn Power service area, the West Virginia portion of the line is expected to benefit customers of Mon Power, another FirstEnergy subsidiary.

"This transmission project is part of our continuous improvement effort to deliver the quality service our customers expect and deserve," said David McDonald, regional president of West Penn Power.  "The new transmission line provides added redundancy, making our system more robust to benefit our customers, especially with the anticipated load growth in this area."

Construction on the $20 million transmission project, which includes a combination of wooden and steel structures, began in the spring 2012 and involved FirstEnergy utility crews as well as outside contractors.  As part of the design, the line also is connected with a large 500 kV substation near Mt. Morris in Greene County via a new transformer that was installed separately at a cost of about $8.5 million.

In 2013, West Penn Power plans to spend approximately $110 million to further enhance the electrical system and reliability in its 24-county service area.  Other major projects scheduled for this year include building new circuits, replacing underground cables, and inspecting and replacing utility poles.

West Penn Power also continues to implement its vegetation management program to trim trees and maintain proper clearances along nearly 4,500 miles of distribution and sub-transmission lines at a cost of nearly $25 million to help reduce tree-related storm damage.

West Penn Power serves about 720,000 customers in 24 Pennsylvania counties.  Follow West Penn Power on Twitter @W_Penn_Power.

FirstEnergy is a diversified energy company dedicated to safety, reliability and operational excellence.  Its 10 electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland, and New York.  Its generation subsidiaries control more than 20,000 megawatts of capacity from a diversified mix of scrubbed coal, non-emitting nuclear, natural gas, hydro, pumped-storage hydro and other renewables.  Follow FirstEnergy on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp.

Editor's Note:  Photo of the new 138-kV transmission line leaving the West Penn Power substation near Kirby, Pa., is available on Flickr.

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the impact on vendor commitments, and the timing thereof as they relate to, among other things, the RMR arrangements and the reliability of the transmission grid, adverse regulatory or legal decisions and outcomes with respect to our nuclear operations (including, but not limited to the revocation or non-renewal of necessary licenses, approvals or operating permits by the NRC or as a result of the incident at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant), adverse legal decisions and outcomes related to ME's and PN's ability to recover certain transmission costs through their TSC riders, the impact of future changes to the operational status or availability of our generating units, the risks and uncertainties associated with litigation, arbitration, mediation and like proceedings, including, but not limited to, any such proceedings related to vendor commitments, replacement power costs being higher than anticipated or inadequately hedged, the ability to comply with applicable state and 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