Sparta Purchases $1.8 Million Substation Transformer

Sparta has approved the purchase of a $1.8 million substation transformer to upgrade the city’s energy infrastructure.

Electric Utilities Manager Belva Bess said this will serve as an additional transformer to work alongside their current one at the power substation. Bess said the transformer will help with the increased energy usage the city has seen from factories.

“It will give us more reliability if something happens we have a second backup plan,” Bess said. “If we continue to grow we are already prepared for that in case we need the additional voltage or the additional usage that they are going to be using coming through.”

Bess said the transformer is estimated to be delivered sometime in 2027. Bess said the transformer is being paid for strictly with money the department has saved up.

“We have been budgeting for that for several years,” Bess said. “Putting back money because we knew eventually we were going to have to get one.”

Bess said the city will have to do some maintenance at the substation to prepare for the arrival of the transformer.

“In the meantime, we will have to prep the substation,” Bess said. “Do a lot of work, they’ll have to do a lot of detail work over there in order to get it set up to put this in there because it is a huge transformer going in and they have to make space for it.”

Bess said Sparta Electric and Caney Fork Electric Cooperative both have their own transformer but share a spare transformer. Bess said they would still share the spare transformer with Caney Fork after adding the additional transformer.