New England states propose coordinated transmission development to support wind power

New Hampshire Public Radio | By Mara Hoplamazian
Published January 30, 2023 at 4:56 PM EST

New England states have taken a new step in building out regional transmission infrastructure.

In two proposals to the U.S. Department of Energy, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont have requested federal support for projects to update and expand the region’s transmission system in preparation for an influx of clean energy resources.

As big, new projects like offshore wind farms get closer to launch in the region, the poles and wires that carry electricity where it needs to go need an upgrade. Doing that work in a coordinated, proactive way could minimize environmental and human impacts and save money – about $20 billion nationally, according to a report from The Brattle Group, a consulting firm, this month.

One of New England’s proposals, called the “Joint State Innovation Partnership for Offshore Wind,” outlines how the states would work with wind developers and transmission providers to develop new lines that support offshore wind.

Jared Chicoine, the commissioner of New Hampshire’s Department of Energy, said the proposal was an effort to take advantage of wind power, especially because of constraints on natural gas coming into New England.

“We're really looking at: what are other options out there to bring power into the region,” he said. “What’s driving this conversation is knowing the needs New England has for additional energy resources and then when it comes to transmission, how we get it to the grid.”

Patrick Woodcock, the commissioner of Massachusetts’ Department of Energy Resources, said the effort was especially important in the light of recent spikes in the price of fossil fuels.

“It is imperative that we transition to a regional electricity system that can support the delivery of both affordable and reliable clean energy to residents and businesses,” he said.

The proposed approach is focused on developing more transmission for offshore wind in the near-term with current technology, while building toward a future system where offshore wind projects are connected to one another along the coast with offshore cables.

Building coordinated transmission offshore could allow projects to connect back to the grid in more strategic places, and reduce the upgrades needed on land. It could also reduce costs that ratepayers might need to shoulder, and be more reliable and resilient than a system where offshore wind developers independently plan how their projects connect with the transmission system, according to the proposal.

The second proposal, which came from Vermont with the support of other New England states, would have the federal government support a transmission line that would bring hydropower from Quebec to Vermont and the rest of the New England market.

The initiatives are part of a call for proposals from the federal energy department associated with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The department is expected to award up to $2 billion to projects funded in this round of applications. Federal officials will invite some projects to submit full proposals by May.

https://www.mainepublic.org/2023-01-30/new-england-states-propose-c...

************************************* 


Fair Use Notice: This website may reproduce or have links to copyrighted material the use of which has not been expressly authorized by the copyright owner. We make such material available, without profit, as part of our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, economic, scientific, and related issues. It is our understanding that this constitutes a "fair use" of any such copyrighted material as provided by law. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes that go beyond "fair use," you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Views: 151

Comment

You need to be a member of Citizens' Task Force on Wind Power - Maine to add comments!

Join Citizens' Task Force on Wind Power - Maine

Comment by Dan McKay on January 31, 2023 at 7:11pm

Willem,

The three big states will slice off output from their in-state gas plants to meet their GHG goals and gas -plants in Maine and NH will ramp up output. Vermont has basically zero gas plants. 

Transmission costs are socialized among the six states if ISO-NE determines such transmission projects are required for reliability.

83% of electric costs are derived from ISO-NE operations and determinations. ISO-NE is no longer stable enough to avoid catastrophe.  

Comment by Willem Post on January 31, 2023 at 6:36pm

The three northern NE states do not count, have minimal clout.

The demand is in the other three states.

They should pay the lion share

Comment by Penny Gray on January 31, 2023 at 5:19pm

Just getting rid of the phantom loads on all electrical equipment would negate the need of any of this and cost the manufacturers pennies on the dollar.  But energy conservation isn't sexy. Maybe this Net Zero has to happen. Maybe we need to crash completely before sanity returns.  Maybe we should all start looking for a horse and cart.

Comment by Jim Wiegand on January 31, 2023 at 4:27pm

Whatever it takes,  people have to get rig of all these crooked bastards. As I've been saying for years.........Corruption, Research Fraud, lying by omission and the rigging of data will never solve this world’s problems.

Comment by Dan McKay on January 31, 2023 at 3:24pm

It is becoming more obvious with every move collaborated by the "wrong way state officials", Maine must get the heck out of ISO-NE.

"

GRID: In New Hampshire, six Republican lawmakers introduce a bill to study if the state should pull out of ISO New England to oversee its own grid and powe..., citing consumer costs and net energy export. (RTO Insider, subscription)"

Comment by Jim Wiegand on January 31, 2023 at 3:14pm

"New England States", it sounds so so innocent.  The truth....Disgustingly corrupt and sellout insiders are proposing this.

 

Maine as Third World Country:

CMP Transmission Rate Skyrockets 19.6% Due to Wind Power

 

Click here to read how the Maine ratepayer has been sold down the river by the Angus King cabal.

Maine Center For Public Interest Reporting – Three Part Series: A CRITICAL LOOK AT MAINE’S WIND ACT

******** IF LINKS BELOW DON'T WORK, GOOGLE THEM*********

(excerpts) From Part 1 – On Maine’s Wind Law “Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine if the law’s goals were met." . – Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, August 2010 https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/From Part 2 – On Wind and Oil Yet using wind energy doesn’t lower dependence on imported foreign oil. That’s because the majority of imported oil in Maine is used for heating and transportation. And switching our dependence from foreign oil to Maine-produced electricity isn’t likely to happen very soon, says Bartlett. “Right now, people can’t switch to electric cars and heating – if they did, we’d be in trouble.” So was one of the fundamental premises of the task force false, or at least misleading?" https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-swept-task-force-set-the-rules/From Part 3 – On Wind-Required New Transmission Lines Finally, the building of enormous, high-voltage transmission lines that the regional electricity system operator says are required to move substantial amounts of wind power to markets south of Maine was never even discussed by the task force – an omission that Mills said will come to haunt the state.“If you try to put 2,500 or 3,000 megawatts in northern or eastern Maine – oh, my god, try to build the transmission!” said Mills. “It’s not just the towers, it’s the lines – that’s when I begin to think that the goal is a little farfetched.” https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/flaws-in-bill-like-skating-with-dull-skates/

Not yet a member?

Sign up today and lend your voice and presence to the steadily rising tide that will soon sweep the scourge of useless and wretched turbines from our beloved Maine countryside. For many of us, our little pieces of paradise have been hard won. Did the carpetbaggers think they could simply steal them from us?

We have the facts on our side. We have the truth on our side. All we need now is YOU.

“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.”

 -- Mahatma Gandhi

"It's not whether you get knocked down: it's whether you get up."
Vince Lombardi 

Task Force membership is free. Please sign up today!

Hannah Pingree on the Maine expedited wind law

Hannah Pingree - Director of Maine's Office of Innovation and the Future

"Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine."

https://pinetreewatch.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/

© 2024   Created by Webmaster.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service