WASHINGTON, D.C. — What is destined to be the nation's second-largest direct current transmission line is one of seven projects to receive fast-track status Wednesday from the Obama administration, which is looking to shore up the country's electrical grid and integrate renewable power.
The TransWest Express Project involves a 725-mile, 600 kilovolt line that begins in Wyoming, crosses Utah and ends in Nevada near Las Vegas. It would deliver wind-generated power from Wyoming for customers in the southwest United States, which is anticipated to have drastic gains in population and more demand for power.
An announcement by the U.S. Department of Interior says the seven streamlined projects will increase grid capacity and create thousands of jobs in Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, New Mexico, Nevada, Wyoming, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Oregon and Wisconsin.
“Transmission is a vital component of our nation’s energy portfolio, and these seven lines, when completed, will serve as important links across our country to increase our power grid’s capacity and reliability,” said Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. “This is the kind of critical infrastructure we should be working together to advance in order to create jobs and move our nation toward energy independence.”
The administration said it has formed a Rapid Response Team for Transmission (RRTT) made up of multiple agencies that will accelerate the permitting and review process for these projects.
Last month, Colorado-based TransWest Express and the U.S. Department of Energy's Western Area Power Administration inked a development agreement to fund a feasibility study of project, with both agreeing to kick in as much as $25 million apiece.
The line, which will convey up to 3,000 megawatts of renewable power, includes two converter stations and follows 393 miles of already federally-designated utility corridors. TransWest is required to mitigate any environmental impacts on federal lands the line may cross and has been working with multiple county agencies throughout impacted states on designating a preferred route.
A draft environmental study commissioned by the Bureau of Land Management solicited written comments and input from people who attended nearly two dozen public meetings held in Utah, Wyoming and Nevada. The study is expected to be available for public comment by mid-2012. A final EIS would be done in 2013, followed by decision issued by the BLM in late 2013.
The line could be operational by early as 2015 or 2016. For a map of the transmission line pilot project visit, www.doe-etrans.us
Other regional projects to receive the fast-track status include Gateway West, jointly proposed by Idaho Power and Rocky Mountain Power. As planned, the project would add approximately 1,150 miles of new, high-voltage transmission lines between the Windstar Substation near Glenrock, Wyo., and the Hemingway Substation near Melba, Idaho.
The announcement brought reaction by The Wilderness Society, which is urging the Obama administration to invoke careful review of the lines so wilderness landscapes are protected as much as possible.
“Building responsibly-sited power lines to access world-class renewable resources can put thousands of Americans to work, bring cost-effective clean power to people who need it, and help some of the rural counties in the West hardest hit by the economic downturn," said Pam Eaton, the group's vice president for public lands.
E-mail: amyjoi@desnews.com, Twitter: amyjoi16