Lone Star State Sees $2 Billion in Plans for Transmission Lines

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Research by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Getting wind and solar energy from the middle-of-nowhere plains and deserts to consumers will take billions of dollars in new transmission lines and upgrades during the coming years. T. Boone Pickens backed out of his plans for 4,000 or so windfarm projects in West Texas, mainly due to lack of transmission.

Transmission line projects have increased significantly to accommodate a surge of planned wind and hydro projects. But they continue to be challenged on environmental grounds, public support, and obtaining approval. Let's face it, nobody likes a high-voltage transmission line running through their backyard. Developers are constantly going back to the drawing board to reroute their lines.

Then there is the initial phase in property assessment, surveying, engineering and route analysis. Surveyors must identify property lines and locate the features that could potentially impact the lines, which include buildings, windmills, roads, fences, etc. This will include discussions with landowners about type of structures and right-of-way. The environmental assessment process must be conducted for birds, fragile wetlands and wildlife habitats.

In Texas alone, there are approximately $2 billion worth of transmission lines scheduled for kick-off before the end of this year. The Texas electrical grid is overseen by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which does business entirely within Texas' borders. It is not subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).

The Competitive Renewable Energy Zone (CREZ) was created to encourage the development of the massive wind potential in Texas to the ERCOT electric market.

Participants include Electric Transmission Texas LLC, a joint-venture between American Electric Power (NYSE:AEP) (Columbus, Ohio) and Mid-American Energy (Des Moines, Iowa), Sharyland Utilities LP (Dallas, Texas), Lower Colorado River Authority Transmission Services (Austin, Texas) and Oncor Electric Delivery Company LP (Dallas).

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