Ameren Missouri supports local suppliers through Smart Energy Plan

Franklin County project utilizes local suppliers to support economic growth

Ameren Missouri's Smart Energy Plan supports communities throughout its service territory with more than just reliable power. By using local suppliers, the company is committed to sourcing local materials and equipment built in Missouri, by Missourians, for Missourians. This commitment is exemplified by Ameren Missouri's partnership with WEG Transformers USA, located in Washington, Missouri.

Over the past five years, WEG has supplied more than two dozen transformers for Smart Energy Plan projects, helping the company expand its manufacturing footprint in Washington. In July, representatives from WEG and Ameren Missouri joined local officials and other stakeholders to view the setting of a new transformer at a substation project just 3 miles south of the facility where it was built.

MiCrews work to set the WEG transformer at Ameren Missouri's new substation in Franklin County.

The new substation in Franklin County will support reliability for more than 2,700 homes and businesses in the area. Additionally, the project will help relieve the load on four other substations in the area, creating the flexibility to support an additional 14,000 customers — including WEG.

“Very likely some of our employees who made this transformer will be on the receiving end of power from this substation,” said Phillip James, general manager of WEG Transformers USA. “The grid reliability not only improves quality of life for our employees but is really critical for us to be a successful manufacturer here.”

In addition to the new substation, the project also includes 9 miles of new and rebuilt power lines with storm-hardening upgrades, such as stronger composite poles. Crews will also install a pole-mounted smart switch, which can automatically detect outages and reroute power — reducing outages from hours to minutes, even seconds.

“Upgrades like this support greater reliability, especially during storms,” said Jay Garrett, senior manager of Ameren Missouri’s Meramec division. “It helps us keep the lights on for more customers while we work to address the cause of the outage.”

Construction of the new substation began in the fall of 2023 and is expected to be in service by the end of 2024. To learn more about Ameren Missouri's Smart Energy Plan and how it is creating a more reliable and resilient energy grid, please visit AmerenMissouri.com/plan.