Electric System
The City electric utility has distribution facilities sufficient to meet the needs of population growth for the next two decades. The City has multi-year contracts for wholesale power supply and an allocated share of 2 megawatts available from the Prairie State Energy Campus to guarantee its base load needs. The system has two substations, allowing for redundancy of power delivery. Extension of electric lines to new areas of development is performed by existing department personnel. The City also maintains a designated reserve fund sufficient to fund replacement vehicular equipment or lines damaged by a large-scale event. Centralia participates in a mutual aid compact with other cities through the Missouri Public Utilities Alliance.
The City distributes power to approximately 2,100 customers in and around Centralia. Centralia's electric system is served by a 34.5kV transmission line owned and maintained by Ameren Missouri. The power is delivered to the substation on North Jefferson Street. The City also has a second substation at 510 W. Wilson St. that was put into service in November 2010. Both substation transformers are 10MVA units. The City distributes power through overhead and underground lines at a system voltage of 4160Y/2400 volts to the residential and commercial areas located in and around Centralia.
Present day-to-day operations include line maintenance and replacement and an ongoing effort to bury electric lines in areas that are hard to access, or susceptible to storm and tree damage. The City should consider prioritizing burial of feeder lines and main “electric line” corridors. The City is also working to add redundant circuits in order to minimize customer outages. Extending service out of the 600 amp circuits in the Wilson Street substation was a priority in 2018-2019 and was completed. In 2016, conduit was installed under both the Norfolk Southern and Kansas City Southern railroad tracks on the east and west ends of town.
The City is also responsible for maintaining streetlights. Energy efficiencies can be improved by retrofitting high pressure sodium lights with LED bulbs and fixtures, which the City implemented in 2018.
