Across the country and here in northern Illinois, increasingly severe weather and storms are becoming more frequent due to climate change. One weather event this summer broke records with at least 40 tornadoes affecting service for more than 550,000 ComEd customers. O’Hare International Airport (ORD), one of the busiest airports in the world here in ComEd’s service territory, sustained no power outages in spite of this summer’s severe storms.
But if you’ve ever flown in or out of ORD, or any airport for that matter, you may notice that very few, if any, utility poles string together powerlines nearby. That’s because ORD, with nearly 1,000 daily flights, must maintain clearance for airlines to land and depart safely. O’Hare’s around-the-clock operations depend on the enormous and reliable power provided by ComEd’s extensive hidden facilities underground.
In 2022, a project to replace five miles of underground lead cable with environmentally friendly and sustainable materials was completed, made possible through over 4,000 man-hours, and with work being performed under the airfield, underneath active airplanes and operations. Powering ORD’s overall capital modernization, the new underground electrical cables and infrastructure greatly improve and ensure long-lasting resiliency and reliability of the airport’s 24/7 operations. The underground replacement project is just the latest example of how infrastructure modernizations carry on to meet the growing needs of the airport sustainably and reliably.
“Through growing clean energy needs and harsher weather brought by climate change, ComEd remains committed to powering the critical needs of our customers. We are fortunate to serve growing customers such as O’Hare – a top economic engine for our region and one of the largest customer sites in our service territory, with plans to grow for the future,” said Nichole Owens, Vice President of Distribution Operations. “We are proud of the work that our underground teams have completed while working in dynamic airport conditions to deliver new durable cable lines and sustainable upgrades that will boost the reliability of power service, enhancing the experience for customers at our growing airport.”
Since O’Hare opened in 1955, ComEd has been powering its operations, supporting continued expansion projects as the terminals have expanded to serve more passengers, with nearly 74 million people moving through the airport annually in 2023. As the airport evolved to what it is today, power lines and infrastructure that were originally overhead were transferred to underground to avoid aircraft coming into contact with power lines, and also to avoid jetwash, another word for turbulence caused by planes moving through the air, which can cause power lines to slap together.
Then, in the late 1990s, the Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA), which oversees and operates both of Chicago’s airports, enabled ComEd to open a reporting center on ORD property to ensure dedicated crews on site and the ability to respond to maintenance and upgrade needs in real-time. Today, ComEd manages over 600 manholes inside and surrounding ORD with equipment that feeds power to each terminal and to all supporting facilities. This is a unique partnership between the utility and the CDA, which allows close coordination with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), as well as the airport’s tenants – over 50 carriers including hub airlines United Airlines and American Airlines.
“Our long-standing partnership with ComEd is essential to the safety of our passengers and many workers of the Chicago O’Hare International Airport, which operates 24/7,” said Commissioner Jamie L. Rhee of the CDA, which owns and operates O’Hare and Midway International Airports. “As the airport pursues a multi-billion capital expansion, ComEd continues to play an integral role in ensuring modern infrastructure to sustainably power the airport’s future projects and the growing needs of its passengers.”
Underground infrastructure is only one example of the partnership to support O’Hare’s growing operations. Earlier this year, ComEd awarded the CDA over $300,000 in incentives to support an ambitious energy-efficient lighting project for ORD that allows the airport to become more sustainable and reduce its carbon footprint. With the switch to these energy-efficient LEDs, the airport is estimated to reduce 1.1 million pounds of carbon emissions yearly, the equivalent of powering 160 ComEd customer homes for one year or planting approximately 630 acres of trees.
As O’Hare and Midway airports both embark on major modernizations, ComEd continues to play a role in ensuring reliable power infrastructure is in place to serve the growing needs. Any new major developments at either airport will continue to be supported by ComEd’s nation-leading reliability, and ongoing investments will ensure the grid remains strong and resilient to serve customers today and into the future.
Watch the video below to see how ComEd underground crews replaced underground facilities.
