Dec 28, 2017   SOURCE: PR NewsWire

JCP&L Completed Upgrades to More Than 80 Major Circuits in 2017 as Part of Service Reliability Program

MORRISTOWN, N.J., Dec. 28, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) has completed upgrades on more than 80 major circuits this year to help enhance service reliability to approximately 175,000 customers in about 150 communities in northern and central New Jersey.

The $4.7 million program included: installing 750 new pieces of high tech equipment to help pinpoint problem areas and restore service automatically; placing 250 animal guard devices on poles and in substations to limit the number of outages caused by squirrels, birds and other critters; attaching 390 lightning arrestors on electrical equipment to help protect the system from stormy weather; and proactively replacing 50 poles, 330 crossarms and about 18,000 feet of wire.

"Upgrading our distribution circuits is an important part of the overall work we do because it focuses on enhancing the part of our electrical equipment that is closest to our customers," said Mark Jones, vice president of Operations for JCP&L. "These projects are designed to reduce the number of service interruptions our customers might experience or reduce the duration if an outage occurs."

Over the past five years, JCP&L has completed similar upgrades for more than 500 circuits.

During 2017, multiple projects were included to enhance circuits in the following counties and municipalities:

    --  Burlington - Four projects serving North Hanover Township, Borough of
        Pemberton, Township of Pemberton, Springfield Township and Washington
        Township
    --  Hunterdon - Nine projects serving Alexandria Township, Borough of
        Califon, Clinton Township, Town of Clinton, Delaware Township, East
        Amwell Township, Township of Franklin, Holland Township, Kingwood
        Township, City of Lambertville, Lebanon Township, Raritan Township,
        Readington Township, Tewksbury Township and Township of West Amwell
    --  Mercer - Two projects serving East Windsor Township, Township of
        Hopewell, Robbinsville Township and West Windsor Township
    --  Middlesex - Eight projects serving Cranbury Township, Township of Monroe
        and Old Bridge Township
    --  Monmouth - Twenty-seven projects serving the Township of Aberdeen,
        Borough of Atlantic Highlands, Colts Neck Township, Borough of Deal,
        Eatontown Borough, Freehold Borough, Township of Freehold, Township of
        Hazlet, Holmdel Township, Howell Township, City of Long Branch,
        Manalapan Township, Matawan Township, Township of Marlboro, Middletown
        Township, Millstone Township, Ocean Township, Borough of Shrewsbury,
        Shrewsbury Township, Borough of Spring Lake, Borough of Spring Lake
        Heights, Borough of Tinton Falls, Upper Freehold Township and Wall
        Township
    --  Morris - Fourteen projects serving Boonton Township, Chester Borough,
        Chester Township, Denville Township, Jefferson Township, Kinnelon
        Borough, Borough of Mendham, Mendham Township, Montville Township,
        Borough of Morris Plains, Morris Township, Town of Morristown, Borough
        of Mountain Lakes, Mount Olive Township, Borough of Netcong, Township of
        Parsippany-Troy Hills, Randolph Township and Roxbury Township
    --  Ocean - Fourteen projects serving customers in Beachwood, Berkeley
        Township, Jackson Township, Lacey Township, Lakewood Township,
        Manchester Township, Ocean Township and Borough of South Toms River and
        Toms River Township
    --  Passaic - One project serving the Township of West Milford
    --  Somerset County - Three projects serving Bernards Township, Borough of
        Bernardsville Borough of Far Hills and Peapack and Gladstone Borough
    --  Sussex County - Seven projects serving Andover Township, Borough of
        Franklin, Fredon Township, Green Township, Hampton Township, Borough of
        Hopatcong, Borough of Ogdensburg, Sandyston Township, Sparta Township,
        Borough of Stanhope, Stillwater Township, Vernon Township and Walpack
        Township
    --  Union County - One project serving the Borough of Mountainside,
        Springfield Township and City of Summit
    --  Warren - Eight projects serving Allamuchy Township, Blairstown Township,
        Frelinghuysen Township, Town of Hackettstown, Hardwick Township, Hope
        Township, Independence Township, Knowlton Township, Liberty Township,
        Township of Mansfield, Town of Phillipsburg and Washington Township

JCP&L is a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE). JCP&L serves 1.1 million New Jersey customers in the counties of Burlington, Essex, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren. Follow JCP&L on Twitter @JCP_L, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/JCPandL, or online at www.jcp-l.com.

FirstEnergy is dedicated to safety, reliability and operational excellence. Its 10 electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York. The company's transmission subsidiaries operate more than 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Follow FirstEnergy online at www.firstenergycorp.com and on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp.

Editor's Note: Photos of JCP&L's circuit enhancement work are available for download on Flickr.

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SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.