News Releases

PPL Electric Utilities today (9/24) announced the route for a new 69-kilovolt power line to improve service for customers in the Honey Brook and Twin Valley areas in Berks, Lancaster and Chester counties.

The new 5.3-mile line is needed to provide an additional source of power to the area to bolster reliability and accommodate future growth in electricity demand.

Two potential routes for the new $11 million Honey Brook-Twin Valley power line were announced early this year and an open house was held in April to help gather public input. The line will run from the utility’s existing Honey Brook substation in Chester County, pass through a small portion of Lancaster County, and end at the existing Twin Valley substation in Berks County.

“The project is one of several planned in the Lancaster region and is meant to make the electric delivery system more reliable by reducing the number and duration of power outages,” said Stephanie Raymond, general manager of Transmission and Substations for PPL Electric Utilities. “We’re committed to investing in our system so that our customers will continue to enjoy the service they’ve come to expect.”

PPL Electric Utilities will invest more than $50 million in improvements in the Lancaster region this year alone. The company’s overall plan is to invest more than $3.6 billion from 2012 through 2016 in improvements across its entire service territory.

“Based on public input and our continuing study of the area, we selected the northernmost of the two potential routes,” Raymond said. “It represents the best balance of all the factors we’re required to consider in siting new power lines.”

Construction is expected to start in summer 2014, with the line becoming operational in spring 2015. Further details can be found at the project website, pplreliablepower.com/lancasterregion.

An open house for property owners and residents to learn more about the project and the route selection is set for 6-8 p.m. Oct. 4 at Twin Valley High School, 4897 Twin Valley Road, Elverson, PA 19520.

Though the line route has been selected, public input remains important, Raymond said. “We understand that building new electrical facilities can raise questions, and we want to hear any concerns residents and property owners might have.”

The Honey Brook-Twin Valley project is the first phase of a planned three-phase improvement initiative in the Lancaster region. PPL Electric Utilities also plans a new North Lancaster substation on land it owns along Route 625 near Bowmansville, Lancaster County. A new transmission line would then run from that new substation south to connect to an existing line in the Churchtown area.

PPL Electric Utilities Corporation, a subsidiary of PPL Corporation that provides electricity delivery services to about 1.4 million customers in Pennsylvania, has consistently ranked among the best companies for customer service in the United States. More information is available at www.pplelectric.com.