EPB lineman David Everett works to install fiber optic cable along Amnicola Highway in this file photo.EPB SPENDINGCapital expenditures and the federal portion:2013*: $60.5 million — $18.6 million2012: $97.4 million — $31 million2011: $119.7 million — $41 millionprojectedSource: EPB
Chattanooga’s $220 million Stimulus-supported Smart Grid project is finally drawing to a close.
Officials for the city-owned EPB say they plan to throttle back on expenditures as the last of the Smart Grid money from the U.S. Department of Energy goes into the bank.
“We’ve had the pleasure of spending like a drunken sailor, but now it’s time to sober up,” said Harold DePriest, president and CEO of EPB. “We think it’s important to reduce electric system costs to pre-fiber levels.”
The utility will complete the installation of 1,134 intelliruptors, devices which instantly reroute power during an outage, and finish placing 135,000 smart meters on local homes, according to the budget that was approved Friday.