Hydro One is investing $580 million over the next six years to improve and grow the electricity supply in Essex County.
Local municipalities have been asking for these improvements for years to support the growth of the greenhouse, industrial, and residential sectors in the region. The Independent Electricity System Operator estimates electricity demand in Kingsville and Leamington will triple from now until 2026.
"We are looking out into the future and these investments to accommodate for future growth," said Mark Poweska, CEO of Hydro One. "We will continue to work with the industry down here to better understand what that future might look like for them."
The investment includes a new $150 million transmission line from Lakeshore to Chatham. In addition, Hydro One will be adding two new transmission stations in Leamington and two in Lakeshore while making improvements to the stations in Kingsville and Tecumseh.
The investments will increase the capacity of the system to up to 1,000 megawatts.
"It will come on in increments along the way so we will be increasing the power to the area incrementally between now and 2026," said Poweska.
Around $12 million will be invested in new smart technologies such as remote switches and fault indicators, pole replacements, and tree trimming to reduce the number and duration of power outages in Essex County.