STATUS: In progress, with opposition.
OPPOSITION: The Citizens Energy Task Force (CETF)
PROSPECTS: Likely. The Upper Midwest's electric transmission grid has not had a major upgrade in nearly 30 years. The region's electricity use - projected to grow 4,000 to 6,000 MW by 2020 - is more than the current grid can handle.
BACKGROUND: CapX2020 is a joint initiative of 11 transmission-owning utilities in Minnesota and the surrounding region to expand the electric transmission grid to ensure continued reliable and affordable service. Planning studies show that customer demand for electricity will increase 4,000 to 6,000 megawatts (MW) by 2020. The new transmission lines will be built in phases designed to meet this increasing demand as well as to support renewable energy expansion, which include: Bemidji-Grand Rapids, 68 miles, 230-kV; Fargo-St. Cloud-Monticello, 250 miles, 345-kV; Hampton-Rochester-La Crosse, 150 miles, 345-kV; and Brookings County-Hampton, 200 miles, 345-kV. The Certificate of Need (CON) application for the three 345-kV lines was filed with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission in August 2007; a decision is expected in spring 2009. A CON application for the Bemidji-Grand Rapids 230-kV project was filed in March 2008, with a decision expected in 2009. A Route Permit application for the Bemidji-Grand Rapids project was filed June 4, 2008. A Route Permit application for the Brookings County-Hampton project was filed December 29, 2008; applications for the other two 345-kV projects will be filed in early 2009. Although early in the process, the project is already generating organized opposition. The Citizens Energy Task Force (CETF) is a coalition of neighbors and citizens concerned about the proposed CapX2020 high voltage transmission lines in Minnesota. The group has argued before the Minnesota Public Utility Commission that the sponsoring utilities have not demonstrated a need for the additional transmission, and that the construction of major line from the Twin Cities suburbs to Rochester, Minn., and across the Mississippi River to La Crosse, Wis., would bisect the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife & Fish Refuge, causing significant damage to rare and endangered species habitat. The group has said they want smaller-scale projects closer to where load is and where there would be less harmful impacts. SOURCES: CapX2020 (www.CapX2020.com); Citizens Energy Task Force (http: //cetf.us); Greenwire (http: //www.eenews.net/Greenwire/2008/12/01/archive/4?terms=CapX2020)
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