The review is a response to fires in underground utility vaults during last week's heat wave that caused significant power outages in Stamford and Meriden.
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She said she expects the department to report its findings by Sept. 15.
About 5,000 CL&P customers in downtown Stamford lost power for nine hours Thursday when the company shut down part of the grid because the South End substation was in danger of crashing. Demand on the system during last week's heat wave was too great, CL&P officials said, so they cut power to downtown to prevent bigger problems.
In Meriden, about 5,000 CL&P customers lost power Saturday morning after a fire broke out in the underground electrical system downtown. All but 195 had power restored as of 9 p.m. yesterday, according to CL&P's Web site.
Rell said she wants CL&P and UI to outline how they plan to handle future breakdowns. UI serves 320,000 customers in the New Haven and Bridgeport areas. CL&P provides service in the rest of the state.
"We have several weeks more of hot summer weather, and we know that heat waves and thunderstorms put our power facilities under tremendous strain," Rell said in a statement. "Not every problem can be prevented. However, we must be certain that a more-than-adequate plan is in place for ongoing preventive measures, upkeep and maintenance. This work must be done regularly and done well."
Frank Poirot, a spokesman for CL&P, which serves lower Fairfield County, said the utility will cooperate fully with Rell's request.
"We do review our own systems," Poirot said. "But it could be a very positive thing to take a statewide look at all of the utilities."
Stamford Mayor Dannel Malloy said the review is necessary but said Rell's reaction was late because the city has had an inadequate power supply for years.
"We had at least three different manhole fires last year and never received a call," said Malloy, a Democrat who will face Rell in a governor's race in November if he wins tomorrow's Democratic primary.
The review "should have been done a long time ago. There has got to be an emphasis on safety and reliability, otherwise Connecticut will continue to (lose) jobs," Malloy said.
Rell is a Republican who will run for governor for the first time in November. She was lieutenant governor under former Gov. John Rowland, who resigned amid a corruption scandal two years ago. Rell took office then.
