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SFPUC outlines electrical upgrades on Treasure Island; new switchgear credited with fewer outages
Summary
SFPUC staff briefed the TIDA board on upgrades to Treasure Island’s electrical system, saying a new switchyard and targeted legacy repairs have reduced outage frequency and limited customer impacts.
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) staff on Sept. 10 summarized a multi‑year effort to stabilize Treasure Island’s electrical service by integrating new infrastructure with an aging legacy system. SFPUC officials said work completed since 2021 — including a new switchyard, fault indicators and selective equipment replacement — has reduced outage frequency and isolated fault events to smaller areas.
Chi Yao, deputy manager with SFPUC Power Enterprise, told the board the new switchgear and switchyard have been important reliability improvements. “The new switchgear has stabilized system performance and has been effective in isolating fault events,” Chi said. SFPUC took ownership of newly constructed electrical facilities in the first two phases in 2024; customers on those new systems are now direct PUC customers while legacy Navy‑era infrastructure remains TIDA property.
PUC staff reviewed ongoing and near‑term projects: installing a new electric express feeder to connect legacy housing directly to the new switchyard, reinforcing the Gate View underground circuit where recent failures occurred, installing bird guards and fault indicators, vegetation management and selective transformer/replacement work. Staff noted the island receives power from the Port of Oakland’s Davis Substation through submarine cables and that some off‑island assets have been discussed for long‑term transfer to PUC ownership.
Board members and residents praised reduced outage frequency, and staff acknowledged the continuing work required to replace aged legacy components. The presentation was informational; no board action was required.
