The company is coordinating with the Minnesota CapX2020 group, which is proposing a 345-kV line from Minneapolis/St. Paul into La Crosse that would connect to ATC’s transmission system at that point. The company is studying the benefits of a 345-kV line from Madison south to Dubuque, Iowa, and a 345-kV line from Wisconsin’s Fox River Valley (Green Bay and Appleton areas) north and south along Lake Michigan, including the viability of voltage levels at 765 kV.
UMTDI is the five-state group including Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota and South Dakota, which was formed in 2008 to identify whether they could reach individual renewable energy goals and site and pay for the needed transmission infrastructure.
John Procario, chief executive officer of ATC, said: “We’ve been studying the La Crosse – Madison line since last year, and it appears needed to move wind associated with UMTDI state renewable portfolio standards. But beyond that, La Crosse – Madison is showing economic benefits for ATC customers, and it further solves a number of regional and local reliability issues including in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area and western Wisconsin.”
The company’s transmission planning studies are centered in three general areas in Wisconsin that are the gateway for moving wind power from North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa to load centers in Wisconsin as well as the Chicago area and other points in the east.
John Procario, added: “Within the next number of months, ATC will be actively engaged in public outreach on one or more of these projects. We applaud the work of the governors and regulatory bodies of the five UMTDI states in identifying renewable energy zones and laying the ground work for solving the difficult cost allocation issues associated with interstate transmission lines.”
