Alabama Power to build new substation at Ensley Works site

Earlier this week, Alabama Power proposed constructing a new transmission substation on a portion of the abandoned Ensley Works site. Read on to learn more about the project.

A redevelopment opportunity in Birmingham

For nearly half a century, the Ensley Works site has sat abandoned on the outskirts of the Ensley neighborhood of Birmingham. After U.S. Steel closed all major operations on the site in 1976, the 600-acre has sat largely unused, although there have been several proposals to redevelop the site.

During the first Birmingham City Council meeting of the year on January 2nd, the Alabama Power Company announced their plans to develop a new transmission substation on the Ensley Works property. The transmission substation would be built on a 17.17-acre section of the Ensley Works site, and located at 1475 Pleasant Hill Road in Sherman Heights.

Here are the details

Not familiar with what a transmission substation does? Don’t worry, neither was I. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), a transmission substation, “receives electric power from a nearby generating facility and uses a large power transformer to increase the voltage for transmission to distant locations.”

Simply put, transmission substations convert electricity to different voltages for customer’s varying needs.

According to Alabama Power’s proposal, there is already a transmission and distribution facility nearby. However, the current facility was built in 1941 and needs upgrades: the new transmission substation will allow Alabama Power to upgrade that facility and use it solely as a distribution station.

Bonus: By turning the existing transmission and distribution facility into a distribution-only station, Alabama Power will be able to remove the large transmission lines that run through the surrounding residential neighborhood.

About the Ensley Works site

Located off Birmingport Road in Ensley, the Ensley Works site was once a thriving steel plant owned by the Tennesse Coal, Iron and Railroad Company (TCI), which became part of U.S. Steel in 1907. However, U.S. Steel chose to close down operations of the Ensley Works site in favor of the more modern Fairfield Works site, which is still in operation today with a new, advanced electric arc furnace.

Excited to see a new development on the Ensley Works site? Tag us @bhamnow to let us know!