PG&E Prepares Northern San Joaquin 230-kV Project for Construction
A July state approval clears PG&E to advance preconstruction for a new 230-kV connection, substation expansion and switching station.
Pacific Gas and Electric is preparing for construction on the Northern San Joaquin 230-kilovolt Transmission Project after the California Public Utilities Commission approved the program in July. The project is intended to meet growing electricity demand and improve reliability in northern San Joaquin County, with construction currently expected to begin in 2028 and finish in 2031.
The planned work includes expansion of the existing Lockeford Substation, construction of a new switching station in Lodi and a new transmission connection to the existing Brighton-Bellota 230-kV line. The project area extends roughly from west of Clements Road to east of State Route 99, and from south of State Route 12 to north of East Harney Lane.
Approval shifts attention to detailed delivery
The CPUC decision allows PG&E to move into planning and preconstruction, but the multi-year schedule shows how much work remains before field construction. Detailed engineering, property access, environmental commitments, outage planning and procurement must be coordinated across the line, substation and switching-station scopes. Those assets have to enter service as one functioning network upgrade even if they are delivered through separate packages.
For customers and local governments, the key near-term issues will be route-specific construction impacts, traffic and access plans, and the sequence of work near existing facilities. For suppliers, the project may create demand across civil foundations, steel, conductors, protection and control, transformers, communications and commissioning. Lead times for major electrical equipment can influence schedule well before visible construction begins.
PG&E’s official project page provides the approved scope, map area and current 2028-to-2031 timeline. The page also makes clear that dates will become more precise as planning advances. The next meaningful signals will be final engineering notices, procurement activity and a defined construction sequence for the three principal system elements.
Representative transmission photograph, not the Northern San Joaquin project. Photo: Novoklimov, CC BY 4.0. No editorial alterations; WordPress may resize or crop for display.
