Work on the new Nashville Electric Service substation — now fully underway in the shadows of the Music City Center in SoBro — is tentatively slated to be operational by July 1, officials said Thursday.
The project is on schedule and now seeing the installation of a gas insulated switchgear (GIS) system manufactured by South Korea-based Hyundai. The installation begin Wednesday and will require about 70 days, according to David Sinker, the substation site project manager representing Carrollton, Ga.-based Aubrey Silvey Enterprises Inc.
Sinker said the July 1 operations start date of the substation, located between Sixth and Seventh avenues along Korean Veterans Boulevard, is realistic but dependent on testing.
“If there are any problems, that could delay [the effort],” he said.
Mike White, MCC project manager, said the installation of the GIS system is an “important part” of Phase I of a two-phase effort.
“Phase I involves everything it will take to flip the switch and discontinue the usage of the current station [fronting Demonbreun Street at Sixth and Seventh avenues],” White said.
White said the compact design of the GIS system, a technology now about eight years old, is needed given the limited ground space on which it will operate.