By Stephen Appezzato
Frequent power outages and outdated technology could be in the past if the state Board of Public Utilities (BPU) approves a $935 million infrastructure upgrade plan from FirstEnergry subsidiary Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L), based in Holmdel.
The proposal, JCP&L’s largest-ever infrastructure upgrade investment plan, was submitted in November and is still under review by the state.
The power company promises the project, known as EnergizeNJ, will provide key investments in system modernization and resiliency to benefit ratepayers by strengthening local electric systems across Monmouth, Ocean and 11 other New Jersey counties and providing the foundation for smart grid capabilities in the future.
One of the Two River-area towns benefiting from the upgrades is Oceanport. During a recent borough council meeting, Mayor Thomas Tvrdik expressed support for the project, saying he would write a letter to the BPU in favor of the EnergizeNJ proposal.
Aside from EnergizeNJ upgrades, JCP&L is constructing a new substation off Main Street, on the corner of Razor Avenue. The exact lot has not been selected yet.
“This is something that’s been in the works for many years,” Tvrdik said. “FMERA (the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority) will get out of the electric business once this is completed,” he added. A substation under FMERA’s jurisdiction currently supplies power to Oceanport sections of the fort.
Tvrdik said JCP&L will file an application with the borough’s planning and zoning board soon as the project will require site plan approval.
“They (JCP&L) will be in front of our board, so if there’s any concerns, you know our board is very intelligent, very comprehensive. I’m sure they’re going to talk to them about buffering, they’re going to talk to them about the aesthetics of the project. They’re also going to talk to them about the mature trees along Main Street, ensuring that most of those trees are not disturbed with this project, if possible,” said Tvrdik.
“I’m in favor of writing this letter of support for all these improvements,” he said.
The borough council gave Tvrdik the green light for the letter.
Christopher Hoenig, a senior communications representative for FirstEnergy, said JCP&L is pleased to hear of local mayors and governing bodies expressing support for EnergizeNJ, which he called “a transformational upgrade of our local electric grid.”
“Our customers… will truly benefit from these enhancements and upgrades, with a storm-hardened, modernized system that reduces how often they lose power and faster restoration times when the lights do go out,” Hoenig said.
EnergizeNJ builds on additions from JCP&L’s 2019 Reliability Plus plan, which the company said has produced better outage restoration times for many customers and prevented and reduced the length of outages by millions of cumulative minutes. The new proposal will upgrade more than 600 miles of overhead power lines with “more robust wiring” which supports increased capacity and resistance to storms.
EnergizeNJ will also replace 46 miles of aging underground lines with modern wiring, install 2,175 TripSaver devices to act as circuit breakers and automatically re-energize powerlines during outages, and purchase new substations and upgrade 18 existing substations to increase system capacity and provide emergency back-up power in the event of significant outages, among other changes.
JCP&L president Jim Fakult said the plan is a transformational upgrade to the electric system and will use modern technology and “smart devices to help reduce the size and duration of outages.”
These upgrades are especially topical following widespread power outages caused by storms in January.
Months after EnergizeNJ was announced, the project remains under BPU review, which is not unusual for proposals of this scale. The BPU represents ratepayers and thoroughly assesses these kinds of projects.
In a release, FirstEnergy stated these upgrades will accommodate the expansion of solar development and electric vehicle charging as the state moves toward clean energy resources. “The overall program helps ensure the grid is prepared for the transition to New Jersey’s clean energy future,” FirstEnergy wrote.
The site locations for EnergizeNJ were determined based on historical outage data across 13 counties to identify which areas would benefit most, with Monmouth being one of them. If the project is approved, JCP&L customers can expect increases in their electricity bills over five years. These increases would occur incrementally over seven rate adjustments, ranging from $0.10 to $0.99. By one estimate, a “typical” residential customer using 783 kilowatt-hours of energy each month whose bill is $116.88 can expect to see an increase of $4.16, or 3.6% on their monthly bill over the five-year project period.
The article originally appeared in the February 8 –14, 2024 print edition of The Two River Times.
