To meet the needs of our customers while strengthening the safety, integrity and reliability of our region's natural gas system, in 2020, Ameren Illinois constructed an energy project to modernize natural gas delivery in the greater Pekin area. This natural gas infrastructure project, known as the Pekin Reliability Enhancement Project, is an upgrade to natural gas transmission pipelines that have been in service since the 1930s. The new pipeline utilized modern coated steel materials. Ameren Illinois identified a route, and designed and constructed the new gas line while minimizing the impact on the community and the environment.
Have a question for our project team? Feel free to contact Yvonne Blount, Project Manager, using the following:
Phone: 217.424.6510
Email: YBlount3@Ameren.com
Please note, the project hotline and email address previously associated with this project have been discontinued at the completion of construction activities.
A right-of-way easement gives Ameren Illinois the right to use another’s land for a specific, limited purpose. It does not grant ownership of the land to Ameren Illinois. Representatives of Ameren Illinois contacted landowners to negotiate the purchase of an easement so that the pipeline could be constructed on their land.
Ameren Illinois requested a permanent right-of-way easement that is 50 feet in width along the length of the new transmission and distribution pipelines. 100 and 200-foot-wide easements were requested at the pipeline’s origin and terminus points, and also at the regulator station location. Additional, temporary right-of-way was requested to facilitate construction. Please refer to the project map for additional information.
The purpose of the Pekin Reliability Enhancement Project (PREP) was to modernize and strengthen the safety, integrity and reliability of Ameren Illinois’ natural gas system, and to enhance operational flexibility to meet our customer’s needs.
Prior to this project, Ameren Illinois delivered natural gas to the Pekin, Illinois area through a single segment of 1930s vintage 6-inch steel pipe. As part of Ameren Illinois' efforts to comply with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) regulations and modernize its natural gas system, Ameren Illinois did the following:
As a result of this project, natural gas service was enhanced and additional natural gas supply sources were made available.