Liberty Utilities in early August will begin construction to upgrade electrical lines in the North Lake Tahoe-Truckee area.

This month crews will begin prepping the site and bringing in materials.

The 650 electrical line is one of the oldest lines in Liberty Utilities’ service territory. The company said upgrading the line, which will eventually operate as part of a 120 kV loop, will allow greater load transfer and switching capability, and will improve Liberty’s ability to serve the North Lake Tahoe area.

The first phase involves the power line segment that is located between Martis Valley and the Northstar substation that generally follows Highway 267. Construction will primarily consist of replacing old wooden poles with self-weathering steel poles. The work should be done by mid-October.

The next segment of the 650 rebuild project will consist of work from the Northstar substation tap to Kings Beach, and will be completed in 2016.