Pacific Gas and Electric Company Announces Major Initiative to Underground 10,000 Miles of Power Lines in Highest Fire-Threat Areas

Strategic Insights -

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) has announced a major new initiative to expand the undergrounding of electric distribution power lines in High Fire Threat Districts (HFTD) to further harden its system and help prevent wildfires. The new infrastructure safety initiative, announced today in Butte County by PG&E Corporation CEO Patti Poppe, is a multi-year effort to underground approximately 10,000 miles of power lines. This represents the largest effort in the U.S. to underground power lines as a wildfire risk reduction measure.

PG&E's commitment to undergrounding power lines is part of the company's ongoing efforts to harden the electric grid and mitigate wildfire risk. By undergrounding power lines, PG&E aims to significantly reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires and provide a more resilient energy system for its customers. The company will engage with stakeholders and customers to develop a plan and review potential additional undergrounding sites based on safety considerations and local municipal planning.

Key Takeaways:

  • PG&E will underground approximately 10,000 miles of power lines, representing the largest effort in the U.S. to underground power lines as a wildfire risk reduction measure.
  • Undergrounding power lines will significantly reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires and provide a more resilient energy system for PG&E's customers.
  • The exact number of projects or miles undergrounded each year through PG&E's new expanded undergrounding program will evolve as PG&E performs further project scoping and inspections.
  • PG&E will engage with customers and stakeholders as it develops a plan and reviews potential additional undergrounding sites based on a variety of factors, including local municipal planning and safety considerations.
  • The company will work closely with customers and local, state, federal, tribal, and regulatory officials throughout this new safety initiative.
  • Undergrounding can now play a more prominent role in PG&E's ongoing efforts to harden the electric grid, following breakthroughs achieved on undergrounding projects in recent years.
  • PG&E's Community Wildfire Safety Program (CWSP) has included demonstration projects aimed at converting overhead power lines to underground in high fire-threat areas, such as Alameda, Contra Costa, Nevada, and Sonoma counties.

Statistics:

  • PG&E maintains more than 25,000 miles of overhead distribution power lines in the highest fire-threat areas (Tier 2, Tier 3, and Zone 1)--which is more than 30% of its total distribution overhead system.
  • 10,000 miles of PG&E lines represents approximately the distance of 11 round trips from Chico to Los Angeles or almost halfway around the world.

Sources:

  • Pacific Gas and Electric Company
  • BusinessWire
  • PG&E Corporation
  • pge.com
  • pge.com/news