​Project further strengthens the grid, builds resiliency while further enabling business and economic growth across the District and Maryland.   

Washington, D.C. (August 30, 2023) – Pepco has reached a major milestone in its efforts to strengthen reliability and resiliency for its customers as it fully energized the company's upgraded Takoma substation in Takoma Park, Md. This is the first of three substations to be upgraded and re-energized as part of Pepco's broader Capital Grid project, which further builds reliability and resiliency in the energy grid, while supporting the growth of renewable energy and enabling more economic development across the region.

"The Takoma substation has provided safe and reliable service to our customers for more than 85 years, but aging infrastructure poses potential risks to the energy grid, and it was time to modernize and reinforce this critical substation to support ongoing growth in the area and enable more cleaner energy options now and in the future," said Jaclyn Cantler, vice president of Projects and Contracts at Pepco Holdings. "This was a major effort, and we are thankful for the support and patience from customers and community members and for the many local and diverse companies who helped bring this project to life."

As part of Capital Grid, Pepco is upgrading three of its existing substations in the District and Maryland, including the Takoma substation. The project also includes constructing a new substation in the Mt. Vernon neighborhood to support projected growth in the area. A new 10-mile underground electric transmission line will connect the substations and create a networked system through which the company delivers electricity to customers. The project will also increase the local energy grid's capacity, allowing it to accommodate more customer-generated power, such as rooftop solar.

Upgrades to the Takoma substation include:

• New high-capacity transformers and feeders that provide a more robust system to handle increasing energy needs as the community experiences rapid residential and commercial growth.
• Upgraded substation structure and equipment to improve performance and aesthetics and reduce the potential for outages.
• Connection to the new underground networked system, which allows power to be supplied through a number of pathways and builds in additional flexibility to minimize the impact should severe weather, equipment issues, or an unforeseen event occur. 
  

Takoma substation upgrades were completed with support from many of Pepco's partners, including Clark Construction, Sargent & Lundy, and ABB who directly worked with Pepco to achieve this milestone. Pepco is also committed to increasing opportunities for local and diverse businesses and contractors throughout major infrastructure projects like this. As part of this commitment, of funds spent to upgrade the Takoma substation, more than $29 million has gone to local suppliers and more than $30 million has gone to diverse suppliers.

Through the Capital Grid project, Pepco is delivering on the company's promise to provide safe and reliable energy to customers, and acting on its commitment to continually help drive the communities it serves forward. As part of the project, the company also expects to energize the upgraded Harvard substation and the new Mt. Vernon substation later this year. For more information about the project, visit pepco.com/CapitalGrid.

To learn more about Pepco, visit The Source, Pepco's online newsroom. Find additional information by visiting pepco.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/PepcoConnect on Twitter at twitter.com/PepcoConnect. Pepco's mobile app is available at pepco.com/MobileApp.