THE TRANSMISSION LINE

LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

When Extreme Weather Becomes the New Norm

From record lows to unseasonable high temperatures, wind storms and everything in between, extreme weather is becoming the new norm in Michigan. At ITC, part of our job is to plan for a system that can handle this extreme weather we’re seeing. Let’s look at some recent events:

January 30-31, 2019: A large area of low pressure and cold air expanding south with the jetstream brought record cold temps not seen in Michigan in over 20 years. ITC’s Michigan systems performed very well and were in the unusual position of exporting as much as 10% of generation to the MISO market, allowing MISO to avoid a capacity shortfall. At the same time, wind output in Michigan was near capacity: 37,662 Megawatt hours, or 12% of Michigan’s total load, came from wind energy on Jan. 30. This underscores how the changing resource mix, and increasing reliance on variable output renewable energy, will make a strong transmission system capable of handling extreme weather events, and vast swings in resource output and availability, even more important.

September 4-5, 2018: Labor Day traditionally marks the unofficial end to summer, but in the weeks that followed, unseasonable high temperatures continued in Michigan. On Sept. 4, ITC’s METC operating company set a September load record of 8,890 MW, breaking the old record by over 500 MW, last set in 2007. The next day, our ITCTransmission operating company set a September load record of 11,552 MW, 150 MW more than the previous 2002 record. Our systems performed well, not only serving load across the state, but importing nearly 2,800 MW of power into Michigan, about 13.5% of the total system load at the Sept. 5 peak. This certainly isn’t the highest; back in July 2018 our systems brought in nearly 20% of the load in the METC and ITCT systems, at just over 4,300 MW. Renewable energy really played a role on Sept. 5: of the total load, 1,361 MW (just under 7% of the total) came from wind energy on both METC and ITCTransmission systems.

March 8, 2017: Michigan residents across the state experienced an extraordinary weather event. Despite the sunny blue sky, wind speeds climbed as high as 68 miles per hour in some areas of the state – not quite hurricane force, but close. The winds kicked into high gear that morning and continued throughout most of the day. At ITC we were closely monitoring the weather conditions, and staying in constant communication with our field crews throughout the day. Fortunately, ITC’s Michigan systems remained resilient with only a few momentary outages (outages less than 60 seconds and automatically restored) and no sustained customer outages.

As I look back on these events, I can’t help but think what a huge testament it is to all the hard work and investment that’s occurred over the last 16 years – from proactive maintenance, to rebuilding aging infrastructure, building new infrastructure, and keeping our corridors clear of vegetation interference. All of these efforts combined have resulted in a system that is more resilient and reliable than it was at our inception, and ready to face the next extreme weather event that comes our way.

Sincerely,

Simon S. Whitelocke
Vice President, ITC Holdings Corp. and President, ITC Michigan

COMMUNITY COMMITMENT

ITC Supports YMCA Program in Cadillac

In northwest Michigan, ITC grant funding is helping The Cadillac Area YMCA keep kids on track for successful futures through after school programming. The YMCA’s Teen Center program engages young people in grades 6-12 in the pursuit of healthy living by offering free healthy meals, informal mentoring, and an environment that is open to and encourages vigorous play by youth throughout the YMCA facility.

Additionally, mentors promote wellbeing by coaching participants through some of life’s most adverse moments, and securing more formal intervention when needed. Currently the program is reaching nearly 700 young people each year with a daily average of 35. With ITC’s support, the YMCA plans to grow the program to over 800 participants with a daily average of 45 or higher.

Dan Smith, the YMCA Cadillac Area Director says, “It’s a good semi-structured way for youth to experience independence in a multi-generational setting, to experience healthy living habits, to form friendships and to have an adult mentor who’s providing value-based leadership in their lives and indirect intervention.

• Video: HTTPS://WWW.9AND10NEWS.COM/2019/01/15/CADILLAC-AREA-YMCA-TEEN-CENTER-KEEPING-KIDS-ON-TRACK/

THAWing Out After the Polar Vortex

Across Michigan, 1.54 million households struggle to afford the basic needs of housing, including energy. To help provide a lifeline to families facing just such a crisis, The Heat and Warmth Fund (THAW) provides financial assistance to economically challenged Michigan families to pay energy bills during the winter months.

In support of the good work that THAW is doing in our Michigan communities, ITC employees gathered on a cold February morning to heat up the phone lines by taking pledges for THAW at the 16^th annual WWJ-AM Winter Survival Radiothon. Simon Whitelocke, president of ITC Michigan, was with the ITC team to present a donation on behalf of the company, saying “At ITC we know very well the importance of having reliable energy during these cold winter months. On behalf of all of our ITC employees, we’re proud to be a longtime supporter of THAW.”

For more information about THAW, please visit HTTPS://THAWFUND.ORG/
Listen to a radio interview HERE.

PROJECT UPDATE

Toll Road Project Update

ITC’s Toll Road Project in Monroe County will provide greater system reliability and operational flexibility in Southeast Michigan. The project is being conducted in three phases:

• Phase I involved construction of the new 120 kV Toll Road Station, which includes 11 120 kV breakers and reconfiguration of the Fermi-Swan Creek circuit into the station. This phase of the project was completed in April 2018.
• Phase II of the project involved the installation of a new 150 MVAR SVC at Toll Road Station, the first SVC installation in ITC’s Michigan systems. SVCs provide an operational tool to ensure voltage stability for a diverse set of system conditions. This phase of the project was completed in December 2018. The Fermi-Vital 120 kV line was cut into the station in February following the SVC installation.
• Phase III of the project involves the completion of a fiber optic relay line between the Toll Road and Shoal stations. Once this project is completed, the Shoal line will be cut into Toll Road Station. This is expected to take place by the end of 2020.

Whiting – Custer 120 kV Rebuild

ITC Michigan will rebuild approximately 10 miles of its Whiting – Custer 120,000 volt (120kV) transmission line, upgrading it to 230kV capacity to support future growth in the region. This project will improve the reliability of high-voltage electrical service in the area by replacing the current structures with double-circuit steel monopoles. Construction is scheduled to begin in Q3 2019 and be completed in Q4 2019. Read the Project Profile HERE.

PARTNERS IN BUSINESS – OCT. 2 IN LANSING

Tom Fletcher, Sr. Manager, Utilities for Pfizer remarked on the effort. “Please accept Pfizer’s THANKS for the last-minute work that was accomplished last night in order to restore the dual-feed to the Kalamazoo site. Please pass this along to the crews that worked diligently last night in the dark to make this happen.”

He added, “The Pfizer site in Kalamazoo is a 7×24 operation, making many products (some life-saving) that are distributed around the world. ITC’s willingness, on short notice, to restore the dual-feed reliability is much appreciated as even momentary interruptions of power typically lead to significant production time lost due to cleaning/qualification required in the sensitive areas of the plant.”

OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE

Spring Into Safe Planting Practices

While April showers and May flowers may still be a few weeks away, gardeners, farmers and landscapers are no doubt getting ready for the spring planting season. If transmission lines and towers are nearby, safety should always be the first consideration when preparing to plant crops, trees, flowers and gardens.

ITC works with communities and landowners to create awareness for the kinds of plants and shrubs that can be safely established near transmission lines, and the right places to plant trees. Under our “Right Tree, Right Place” program, we hold education events in communities to encourage landscape management that achieves landowner desired results while also preventing tree interference with transmission lines.

Planting the right tree in the right place, away from power lines, can help conserve energy by providing wind protection, shade and cool air. This can add beauty, privacy and wildlife habitat to the landscape while also protecting the safety and reliability of the transmission system.

As a landowner, it’s important to know how high a tree can grow when it reaches its full height. When it comes to planting near high-voltage transmission lines, ITC recommends:

• Low-growing shrubs and grasses that will not go over 15 feet high in what we call the “wire zone”
• Smaller, decorative trees and shrubs in what we call the “border zone”
• And taller trees above 25 feet in the “far border zone”

There are a lot of different factors that determine the width of these zones. We recommend that home and business owners contact ITC if they are planning to plant something near power lines and we’ll be happy to answer any questions or provide recommendations.

For further information, please visit: 
HTTPS://WWW.ITC-HOLDINGS.COM/COMMUNITY-APPROACH/VEGETATION-MANAGEMENT