Miami Fort River Crossing

Reliability is a responsibility that Duke Energy takes very seriously. As part of our commitment toward building a smarter energy future, we will be reconductoring a portion of 345-kilovolt (kV) transmission line from the Miami Fort Substation in Hamilton County, Ohio, to the Tanners Creek Substation in Lawrenceburg, Ind. This project will involve two Ohio River crossings – from Indiana to Kentucky in 2020 and from Ohio to Kentucky in 2021. The project also will use a helicopter to support the replacements of six transmission towers and to reconductor the transmission line over the Ohio River.

Project Need

This project will provide greater energy capacity and enhanced service reliability for these growing communities.

Project Description

Construction involves twice crossing the Ohio River as well as replacing six transmission towers with modern structures. Four will be replaced with an H-frame structure that is made of steel poles on concrete foundations. The other two structures will be three-pole structures set on concrete foundations.

The existing towers are 75 to 110 feet high. The new H-frame poles are 27 feet apart and vary from 100 to 130 feet tall. Each pole of the H-frame will be installed on an 8-foot-diameter concrete-drilled pier foundation.

The new three-pole dead-end structures will be 30 feet apart and will vary from 110 to 130 feet tall. The poles will not be connected to each other. Each pole will be installed on a 9-foot-diameter concrete-drilled pier foundation.

The new structures will be set within 30 to 50 feet of the existing structure.

Construction on the Indiana-Kentucky portion of the project into Boone County will begin in October and continue through December. Crews will work from the air and the ground, as trucks are used to erect the new structures. The second river crossing in 2021 involves crossing the Ohio River into Boone County, Ky., from the Miami Fort Substation in Miami Township, Ohio.

The helicopter work saves on extensive time for construction and cost, as well as on public impacts due to shorter construction periods in communities and land restoration.

Benefits to the Community

• Improves electrical system reliability
• Better addresses the impact of severe weather in the city
• Maintains a robust system for supplying and delivering energy, which is integral to ensuring the continued economic growth and prosperity of the city
• Improves power quality and reliability for decades to come

Engagement

Community engagement allows us to receive input and to share information about this project.

Property owners first received notification about this project in a letter sent in July 2020.