ERCOT: $8.7 Billion in Power Transmission Projects Planned in Next Five Years

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Texas grid operator Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) (Austin, Texas) has announced that nearly $8.7 billion in power transmission projects are planned to begin in the next five years. ERCOT stated that $5 billion of these projects would be used to carry 18,000 megawatts (MW) of renewable power generation.

In a press release, ERCOT said, "The planned projects are expected to improve or add nearly 7,000 circuit miles of transmission lines and more than 17,000 megavolt-amperes (MVA) of autotransformer capacity to the grid, including the Competitive Renewable Energy Zones (CREZ) transmission additions that are scheduled to be in service by 2013." In 2005, the Texas legislature introduced the concept of CREZs, which are designated areas for renewable energy construction and transmission projects. There are five designated CREZs for which ERCOT has ordered more than 2,300 miles of 345-kilovolt (kV) transmission lines to be completed by 2013.

ERCOT has said that the CREZs will accommodate approximately 18,500 MW of wind generation in West Texas. At the 123rd annual meeting of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) held in November 2011, ERCOT said that it was evaluating 33,291 MW of wind generation projects and 1,494 MW of solar projects for interconnection to the ERCOT grid.

ERCOT divides its grid system into eight weather zones. (Click on image at right for a map showing these zones.) In ERCOT's "2011 Electric System Constraints and Needs" report, published December 2011, ERCOT listed recent constraints, planned improvements and projected constraints for each of these zones. For most weather zones, ERCOT reported that downed transmission paths for improvement projects a maintenance, as well as load growth from nonrenewable sources, were the primary cause of recent constraints.

However, for two of the weather zones, the Far West and West zones, ERCOT specifically mentioned the increasing amount wind generation capacity as a constraining factor on the power transmission infrastructure.

The Far West weather zone includes the cities of Midland and Odessa, as well as the Big Bend area. In its end-of-year report, ERCOT said: "The Far West weather zone constraints are due, in part, to moderate load growth. Some congestion is due to the increase of wind generation in the area and the limited ability to export the power to load centers to the east." Major transmission projects in this region include the 311-mile, 345-kilovolt (kV) transmission line that will run from Scurry County to Navarro County. The project, which has an estimated total investment value (TIV) of $582 million, kicked off last summer and should be operational by mid-2013. Lone Star Transmission LLC (Austin) is acting as project director, while Oncor Electric Delivery Company LLC (Dallas, Texas) is responsible for the new substations along the route.

The West weather zone includes the cities of Del Rio, San Angelo, Abilene and the western part of the Texas Hill Country. In regard to transmission constraints in this zone, ERCOT said, "Congestion in the West weather zone is due to the large amount of wind generation capacity with limited transmission capacity to the high load growth central Texas area." In addition to the above-mentioned project, which also crosses this region, major transmission projects include LCRA Transmission Service Corporation's (Austin) Big Hill-to-Kendall 345-kV, grassroot transmission line. Construction of the 38-mile, double-circuit, overhead line should begin later this year, and the project, which has a TIV of $200 million, is hoped to be completed by the end of 2013.

As the nation's largest wind power generator, Texas is paving the way for the right balance of transmission and wind projects. With the $8.7 billion in planned transmission projects, the Lone Star State seems to be heading down the right path for easing transmission bottlenecks and tapping Texas' vast wind resources.

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