FirstEnergy has been awarded $50m in federal funding by the US Department of Energy’s Grid Deployment Office for projects that will enhance electric service reliability for more than 53,000 customers in West Virginia and Maryland.

The funding is part of the Grid Resilience & Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) programme.

The funding will be applied towards system upgrades totalling nearly $127m, benefiting approximately 50,660 customers in West Virginia and 2500 customers in Maryland. Expected to be complete in late 2029, the work across 19 counties will be implemented by FirstEnergy electric companies Mon Power and Potomac Edison.

The planned upgrades will feature the installation of new technology and equipment that will help reduce the number and duration of outages that customers in those counties experience. The upgrades will also benefit more than 450 critical facilities such as schools and hospitals by improving electric service reliability.

“We are deeply grateful to receive this funding from the Grid Deployment Office, which will support system enhancements that help keep the lights on for thousands of customers and hundreds of critical facilities across our service territory,” said Jim Myers, vice president of FirstEnergy’.

The planned upgrades include installation of smart devices on power lines that allow operators to isolate the damage remotely, reducing the number of customers affected by outages. Automation projects will allow utility personnel to switch customers automatically to an adjacent power line in the event of outages. Wires will be installed that can carry increased electrical current, making those lines capable of serving as a backup power feed for adjacent lines while repairs are made during an outage.

In Mon Power’s service area, the upgrades are expected to benefit approximately 47,260 customers in Barbour, Calhoun, Doddridge, Gilmer, Greenbrier, Harrison, Lewis, Nicholas, Pocahontas, Randoloph, Roane, Tucker, Upshur, Webster, Wetzel and Wood counties.

In Potomac Edison’s service area, the upgrades will benefit approximately 3400 customers in Berkeley, Jefferson and Mineral counties in West Virginia and 2500 customers in western Maryland.

The project includes the creation of a four-year apprenticeship programme with training centres in Williamsport, Maryland and Fairmont, West Virginia. FirstEnergy’s apprenticeship programme helps address the continuing need for new line workers and substation electricians, offering hired apprentices paid, full-time employment that begins with the start of their training.

Earlier this autumn, Mon Power was awarded $5m in federal funding by the US Department of Energy for a project that will enhance electric service reliability for customers in parts of rural West Virginia. Mon Power (mon-power.com) serves about 395,000 customers in 34 West Virginia counties.

Potomac Edison (potomacedison.com) serves about 285,000 customers in seven counties in Maryland and 155,000 customers in the eastern panhandle of West Virginia.

FirstEnergy (www.firstenergycorp.com) serves more than six million customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York.