Duke Energy presents new substation in Whiteville

WHITEVILLE, NC (WWAY)– On Monday, Duke Energy cut the ribbon for their new substation located in Whiteville.  

This one replaced the previous one that was damaged by flooding during hurricanes Matthew and Florence.  

“Getting this substation into service today is exciting not only professionally, but personally, to be able to help this community and keep it better protected when we have severe storms in the future,” said Spokesperson for Duke Energy, Jeff Brooks.  

The original substation was underwater during both storms, which caused an extended outage period in the region.   

The new station sits 30 feet higher than the old one, which officials say should provide more reliability in a major storm.   

“From an infrastructure standpoint, with the modern technology and improving the grid structure in town along with this, is a tremendous asset to the City of Whiteville and Columbus County,” said Terry Mann, Mayor of Whiteville.  

In addition to the new substation, significant grid improvements have been made in Whiteville, including pole and line upgrades, and the addition of smart, self-repairing technology. 

Duke Energy says they know how essential electricity is to homeowners and businesses, and say they will continue their efforts to strengthen the power grid.