Substation Puts CPN’S Iron Horse Industrial Park on the Grid

Tenants at the Iron Horse Industrial Park will enjoy plentiful, reliable and affordable electricity thanks to a substation which recently went into operation.

The substation was built by a partnership between the Grand River Dam Authority (GRDA) and the Citizen Potawatomi Nation (CPN), which owns the industrial park.

The new facility allows the tribe to provide power directly to its tenants, CPN Electrical Department Director Justin Whitecotton said.

“There are no outside entities involved; tenants are only dealing with the tribe when they build at Iron Horse,” he said. “Plus, the facility is designed to grow along with our tenants.”  

The power station sends as much as 13.8kV of power to new electrical lines at the park, said GRDA Customer Services Manager Cameron Philpott. It can supply up to 20 megawatts, which is enough to power more than 170 average-sized industrial sites.

Philpott looks forward to continuing a partnership with the Tribe and Iron Horse Industrial Park as well.

“You can hear the excitement in the voice of the electric department staff when you bring up the new service and its potential,” he said. “GRDA has been supplying reliable, abundant power to customers all across Oklahoma for 80 years now and we look forward to that same kind of lasting relationship with CPN for many years to come.”

Bringing the station online means CPN can provide power for production and manufacturing to the industrial park’s first customer, Pro Pipe LLC.

The 700-acre Iron Horse Industrial Park provides direct access to the national rail network and highway system, and offers all utilities for light industry, manufacturing and assembly – including high-speed telecommunications. For more information, visit ironhorsecpn.com or email James Collard at jcollard@potawatomi.org.