Pittsboro-Hanks Chapel Project

A multi-disciplinary, objective analysis to identify a transmission line route. Duke Energy’s process includes social, land use, environmental and engineering considerations and develops a line’s route to have the least impact to each. The siting study utilizes information from publicly available data sources but also relies on collecting data from other stakeholders as well. Duke Energy depends on records from government agencies and feedback from property owners and the general public to ensure appropriate routing decisions. 

The process is generally split into three primary phases: data collection, alternative route analysis and decision reporting. Duke Energy relies on information and feedback from the public during all phases of the study, usually at public open houses. During data collection, the study creates a baseline study area to include a reasonably sized vicinity in which to identify a set of route options to consider. Duke Energy investigates all available resources to collect information on constraints (areas to avoid) and opportunities for transmission line routing in the study area. Alternative route analysis primarily focuses on development of route options within the study area. The data collected in the previous phase, including information from the public, is used to create a set of route alternatives. These route alternatives are presented to the public stakeholders in meetings with public agencies and regulators and during another open house. These alternatives are then evaluated and scored based on a number of criteria with social, land use, environmental and engineering considerations. Duke Energy will then comprehensively review the quantitative results of the analysis and select a preferred route for the transmission line. During decision reporting, all stakeholders are notified of our decision; at this time, affected property owners are contacted about the route selection.

In most cases, the major benefits to a new substation will come longer range, but there are benefits that will come the day the substation is energized or soon after. Some of those are:

1. Providing substation and distribution capacity to serve new load
2. Strengthening the transmission and distribution grids
3. Reducing the number of customers experiencing an outage
4. Significant reductions in outage restoration time
5. Increasing the capacity of the grid to manage new load in the most economical manner
6. Creating additional distribution feeder ties, which increases flexibility to facilitate substation and distribution maintenance work