PRIEST RIVER — Northern Lights customers in western Bonner County will be without overnight power on two dates this month and another next month as the Bonneville Power Administration upgrades transmission lines between Albeni Falls and Sandpoint.

Northern Lights said all of its customers in the Priest Lake and area and those in Priest River north of the Pend Oreille River will be affected. BPA has requested three nine-hour outages on the following dates:

• 10 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 19 to 7 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 20

• 10 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 26 to 7 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 27

• 10 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 3 to 7 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 4

The $8 million project will ultimately replace 340 power piles and 17 miles of transmission line will be fitted with new conductors, according to BPA.

The work was slated to begin in May and wrap in November.

BPA officials said that the existing transmission line and wood poles have gradually deteriorated over time due to exposure to the elements as well as normal wear and tear.

The agency has performed routine maintenance along the line, but many of the poles, conductors and other equipment were part of the original structures built in the early 1950s.

“If BPA does not rebuild it by installing new poles and replacing the hardware, it will risk deterioration, which could lead to line failures and possible power interruptions,” BPA project manager Erich Orth said in an April 6 letter explaining the work.