ST. LOUIS – Ameren has completed a $215 million infrastructure project for the St. Louis region nearly six months ahead of schedule.

The company touts the Metro South Reliability Project as a “milestone” in Ameren Missouri’s Smart Energy Plan, which is designed to create a more reliable and resilient energy grid for customers.

The project helped with reconstructing 10 miles of 138,000-volt transmission line in the City of St. Louis and St. Louis County. The transmission line connects infrastructure from Shrewsbury to Bella Villa and crosses the Mississippi River into Illinois, serving tens of thousands of residents in St. Louis City, South County and Metro East.

The project included construction of two new transmission towers on both sides of the Mississippi River. Each tower stands nearly 300 feet tall and weighs around 500,000 pounds. The towers are another source of power supply that helps prevent outages and increases energy capacity.

“Our transmission system is a superhighway of energy,” said Shawn Schukar, president, Ameren Transmission Company. “Thanks to this project’s smart grid technology, customers on both sides of the river will benefit from a more robust system delivering safe, affordable, reliable and cleaner energy.”

“This major investment in energy infrastructure provides great value to our customers by increasing energy supply capacity, incorporating smart technology and improving reliability, all while bringing cleaner energy sources to homes and businesses,” said Suzanne Pohlman, project manager for the Metro South Reliability Project.

Ameren estimates the project will help improve energy reliability for at least 100,000 Missouri and Illinois customers in the St. Louis area.

Pohlman says the project will enable a “seamless transition” with the Meramec Energy Center expected to close at the end of the year.