MT. VERNON, Ill. (Apr. 25, 2023) – Ameren Transmission is hosting two in-person public open houses this week in Jefferson and Wayne counties for a transmission project that will bolster the electric grid.
The first open house is 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 26, at Fairfield Elks Lodge, 201 SE 2nd Street, Fairfield. The second open house will take place from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Mt. Vernon American Legion, 816 Main Street in Mt. Vernon.
Ameren Illinois Company (AIC) and Ameren Transmission Company of Illinois (ATXI) are proposing the Mt. Vernon Area Reliability Project to improve energy reliability for local customers in Jefferson and Wayne counties and the surrounding region. The Mt. Vernon Area Reliability Project is the first proposed project in a larger portfolio of energy projects called the South-Central Illinois Transmission Expansion (SCITE) Program. The SCITE Program is being jointly developed by Ameren Transmission and regional member cooperatives and will provide significant reliability benefits for regional energy grids and customers across the southern portion of Illinois.
As the first project under the SCITE Program, the Mt. Vernon Area Reliability Project includes two phases. Phase 1 includes construction of an approximately 5-mile 138 kV transmission line from AIC’s existing Mt. Vernon 42nd Street substation to the proposed Reifen substation located east of Mt. Vernon in Jefferson County. Our goal is to have these facilities in service in December 2025.
Phase 2 includes the construction of the 138 kV transmission line approximately 30 miles from the proposed Reifen substation to another proposed substation, named Kays, located near Fairfield in Wayne County. Our goal is to have these facilities in service in December 2026.
During each open house, the Mt. Vernon Area Reliability Project team will include project overview information and an opportunity to provide input on the Route Segments. All three open houses will include the same information with no formal presentation. There will also be a self-paced, virtual engagement and comment map available April 25-May 7. More information can be found on the project website.
“Community input is crucial to this project,” said Jim Jontry, Project Manager Mt. Vernon Area Reliability Project. “The feedback received at our in-person and virtual open houses is foundational to building a project that will ultimately provide more safe, affordable, reliable and cleaner energy to Mt. Vernon-area homes and businesses.”
Additional information is available on the project’s website at Ameren.com/MTVAreaProject, by sending an email to info@MTVAreaProject.com, or by calling the project hotline at 833.478.7733.
About Ameren Corporation
St. Louis-based Ameren Corporation powers the quality of life for 2.4 million electric customers and more than 900,000 natural gas customers in a 64,000-square-mile area through its Ameren Missouri and Ameren Illinois rate-regulated utility subsidiaries. Ameren Illinois provides electric transmission and distribution service and natural gas distribution service. Ameren Missouri provides electric generation, transmission, and distribution service, as well as natural gas distribution service. Ameren Transmission Company of Illinois develops, owns and operates rate-regulated regional electric transmission projects. For more information, visit Ameren.com, or follow us on Twitter at @AmerenCorp, Facebook.com/AmerenCorp, or LinkedIn.com/company/Ameren.