youryour lines.lines. youryour lights.lights. youryour community.community. FALL 2014
Thumb Loop 345 kV Transmission Line Project Final Thumb Loop construction phase enters Sanilac County
Work on Phase 3, the final segment of the 140-mile Thumb Loop project, is
proceeding on schedule as crews from our Michigan-based contractor M. J. Rapson Electric work their way from Huron County south through Sanilac County to Bad Axe connect Phase 1 with Phase 2 in northern St. Clair County early next year. 1 HURON
Phase 3 covers 58 miles from the Rapson substation near Bad Axe, south along Caro Sandusky the eastern side of the Thumb to the Greenwood substation in St. Clair County. Bauer Banner 3 It includes 344 structures, mostly steel monopoles plus a few steel lattice TUSCOLA structures where extra strength is needed for sharp angles. Crews are drilling and SANILAC ST. CLAIR pouring foundations, hauling pole sections to their locations along the line right- Port Huron of-way and assembling and erecting the poles on their concrete foundations. 2 Fitz Construction of the Banner substation near Sandusky, the last of the four primary substations for the project, will be getting underway in October. New Substations Final restoration work is wrapping up on the 62-mile Phase 1 segment in Tuscola and Huron counties. Phase 1 went into service in September 2013. The entire Thumb Loop project is projected to be complete and in service in 2015. n
Rapson
Bad Axe HURON
Caro Sandusky Bauer Banner
TUSCOLA SANILAC ST. CLAIR Port Huron Fitz
New Substations
27175 Energy Way 877.ITC.ITC9 (877.482.4829) Novi, MI 48377 www.itctransco.com St. Clair County event celebrated the everyone that while the Thumb Loop’s primary purpose is completion of Thumb Loop Phase 2 to serve as a backbone for integrating renewable energy into the transmission system, it also will play an important role in Community leaders in St. Clair County joined ITC to celebrate increasing systemRapson reliability and improving the efficiency of the Rapson the completion of Phase 2 of the Thumb Loop transmission line grid throughoutBad the Axe Thumb region. Bad Axe project earlier this summer. ITC Michigan President Gregory HURON HURON Phase 2 of the Thumb Loop project is a 20-mile segment with Ioanidis welcomed the guests gathered at the Greenwood 96 monopolesCaro and five steel lattice towers. It was energized Caro Township Hall to acknowledge the magnitude of support from1 Sandusky Sandusky on May 16 andBanner includes 20 miles of new line construction, Banner community leaders and residents that helped ITC complete Bauer Bauer modification to the towers and existing transmission line to add Phase 2 on-time and on-budget. TUSCOLA TUSCOLA 3 an additional circuit,SANILA Ca new substation (Fitz) in Wales Township SANILAC ST. CLAIR ST. CLAIR Greenwood Township Supervisor Terry Gill and State Sen. Port Port and the expansion of theHuro existingn Greenwood substation Huron Phil Pavlov spoke to ITC’s accomplishments and cited the adjacent to the GreenwoodFitz Energy Center in Avoca. Fitz company’s excellent communications and involvement with the Ioanidis noted ITC will continue to be a part of the community local communities, and the investments in jobs, reliable power New Substations New Substations for years to come – through continued support of community and infrastructure for the Thumb. activities, communication with residents and involvement with Ioanidis praised the cooperative efforts of our contractors, local officials.n vendors, local officials and community leaders in the Thumb
Area who worked together to advance the project. He reminded Rapson
Bad Axe HURON
Caro Sandusky Bauer Banner
TUSCOLA SANILAC ST. CLAIR 2Port Huron Fitz
New Substations Thumb Loop 345 kV Transmission Line Project
Rapson Rapson
Bad Axe Bad Axe HURON HURON
Caro Caro 1 Sandusky Sandusky Bauer Banner Bauer Banner
TUSCOLA TUSCOLA 3 SANILAC SANILAC ST. CLAIR ST. CLAIR Port Port Huron Huron Fitz ITCFitz in the Community While working to construct the Thumb Loop, ITC has continued its New Substations New Substations Rapson involvement in communities in Michigan’s Thumb Region. Just as our Bad Axe assets are long-lived in the community, ITC strives to build long-lasting 1 HURON relationships with members of the communities we serve. Caro Sandusky St. Clair Riverfest – St. Clair, MI Bauer Banner 3 Rapson More than 60 St. Clair County community leaders and elected officials TUSCOLA Bad Axe SANILAC HURON joined ITC to enjoy the St. Clair River Classic Offshore Boat Race. Among ST. CLAIR Port the attendees were State Sen. Phil Pavlov, St. Clair County Commissioners, Huron Caro Sandusky leaders from Port Huron, Columbus and Wales Townships, and 2 Fitz Bauer Banner representatives from the St. Clair County Road Commission. More than New Substations TUSCOLA 100,000 fans lined the banks of the St. Clair River to watch the exciting SANILAC ST. CLAIR display of speed and power on the St. Clair River. n 2Port Huron Fitz
New Substations Thumb Loop benefits Rapson The Thumb Loop Project, with its 140 miles of transmission lines and four new Bad Axe substations, is designed to serve as a backbone infrastructure to support the HURON interconnection of new generation resources in the region. As additional new Caro generation is developed, more lines and facilities are constructed to connect Sandusky Banner it to the backbone system. So far in the project, three additional substations – Bauer Ringle in Akron Township (Tuscola County), Stein in Winsor Township (Huron TUSCOLA SANILAC County) and Minden in Sigel Township (Huron County) – have been constructed ST. CLAIR Port to connect energy from wind farms into the Thumb Loop. A fourth substation, Huron Fitz Grassmere in Colfax Township (Huron County), is scheduled to go online in late October. Also, more equipment is being added at the Minden substation to New Substations accommodate another new wind farm. 222 Park Avenue, Suite 1 Bad Axe, MI 48413 Return Service Requested
Thumb Loop 345 kV Transmission Line Project
your lines. your lights. your community.
Fast Facts: Line length: Approximately 140 miles Key Dates & Timeline: Line route: Tuscola, Huron, Sanilac and St. Clair counties Feb. 25, 2011: Michigan Public Service Commission issued expedited siting certificate. Voltage: 345,000 V (345 kV) Second Quarter 2011: Right-of-way discussions with landowners began. Right-of-way width: Approximately 200 feet Fourth Quarter 2011: Construction began on Bauer substation. Structure type: Steel monopole, double circuit First Quarter 2012: Construction began on Phase 1 line segment Structure height: 125-180 feet. Majority are 150 feet. (Tuscola County to Huron County). Distance between structures: Approximately 800 to 1,100 feet September 2013: Phase 1 line, Bauer to Rapson, completed and Structures per mile: Average of six in service. Substations: Bauer (Tuscola County), Rapson (Huron May 2014: Phase 2 line in St. Clair County completed and in service. County), Banner (Sandusky County), Fitz (St. Clair County). 2015: Phase 3 line and Banner substation enter service, project is complete.
About ITCTransmission International Transmission Company (d/b/a ITCTransmission) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of ITC Holdings Corp., the nation’s largest independent electricity transmission company. Based in Novi, Michigan, ITCTransmission owns, operates and maintains approximately 2,800 circuit miles of transmission line in southeast Michigan, serving a population of 5.1 million. For more information, please visit http://www.itctransco.com. n