Electric service lines in Plymouth area being upgraded

PLYMOUTH — Work is underway on the upgrade of a seven-mile stretch of utility corridor that will increase the reliability of electric service for New Hampshire Electric Co-op (NHEC) members in Plymouth and surrounding towns.

The upgrade involves the replacement of all NHEC poles and wire along the highway right-of-way that runs from Rumney through Plymouth to Holderness along Route 25, Fairgrounds Road and Route 3. When the work is complete, redundant ties will connect four NHEC substations in the Plymouth area, allowing for power to be rerouted in the event of an outage affecting members served by any of the four substations.

The upgrade will also enable the Groton Wind Farm, if it receives necessary permits, to deliver power from the farm site to the electrical grid. A total of 24 wind turbines capable of producing up to 48 megawatts of power are proposed for construction by Iberdrola Renewables, Inc. atop two ridges in the town of Groton. The new poles being installed by NHEC will have space for two new electric lines that can carry power from the site and deliver it to a new substation to be built by Northeast Utilities off Route 175 near the Campton – Holderness town line.

The majority of new poles planned for the right-of-way will be 50 to 55 feet in height and will replace poles that are 45 to 50 feet tall. Work is scheduled to be completed by August 2012.

NHEC is a member-owned electric distribution cooperative serving 80,000 members in 115 New Hampshire communities.