BPA Announces McNary-John Day Transmission Line Project

The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) has decided to build the McNary-John Day 500-kilovolt transmission line. The project has been valued at $246 million and would create 700 jobs at its peak. The project would be operational by 2012. The transmission line will allow BPA to provide transmission service to more than 870 megawatt (MW) of energy, including service for more than 700 MW of new wind energy. Work will begin this spring.

McNary-John Day is one of four high-voltage transmission lines BPA has proposed to meet the region’s transmission needs. BPA recently completed its environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for the McNary-John Day project.

The line will run from BPA’s McNary Substation in Oregon, cross the Columbia River and run parallel to the Columbia River for 75 miles, mostly within existing rights-of-way, then cross the Columbia River back into Oregon and end at BPA’s John Day Substation.

The plan has given BPA additional $3.25 billion in borrowing authority from the U.S. Treasury for capital projects in the newly signed law.

This project creates jobs and enhances our nation’s energy independence while expanding the Pacific Northwest’s transmission system to meet its growing energy needs and thirst for renewable power, Steve Wright BPA administrator said. We appreciate that the recovery package allows expansion plans of this magnitude with the capital certainty created by the recent increase in BPA Treasury borrowing authority.

United States Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Congressman Peter DeFazio (D-OR) said that the McNary-John Day project was an evidence that the recovery package will help get the Northwest working again.

BPA is moving quickly to put people to work, said Senator Murray. That’s because this funding gives BPA the room to breathe in these tough economic times and the certainty to move forward with new projects. It will also help to bring alternative sources of energy online throughout the Northwest.

I am proud that BPA has aggressively moved to put into place a long-term infrastructure investment that will benefit the Pacific Northwest and expand our access to renewable energy sources. This project is a fine example of infrastructure spending that provides the most bang for the buck, Congressman DeFazio said.

BPA’s projects besides McNary-John will begin their NEPA reviews in the near future. These NEPA reviews will include a public process and take 18 months to three years for each of the proposed lines, depending on the project’s complexity.

The four transmission line projects would add more than 225 miles of lines to the Northwest transmission grid, allowing BPA to provide transmission service to about 3,700 MW of requests received in the Network Open Season, including service for 2,790 MW of additional green energy.

Senator Ron Wyden said Bonneville’s announcement shows that there really are turbine-ready, green energy projects that will put people to work here in the Northwest. Bonneville is moving at warp speed to take full advantage of the new authority in the economic recovery bill. Today’s announcement, just days after the President signed recovery bill into law, is a perfect example of what we can do to invest in infrastructure and lay the groundwork for a new renewable energy economy.

Congressman Jay Inslee said To bring job growth and long-term consumer benefits to the Pacific Northwest, one of the most significant provisions in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is a $3.25 billion dollar increase in the Bonneville Power Administration’s borrowing authority. This will spur investments into infrastructure and technologies to help up to 6,000 megawatts of wind to be integrated into the region’s power grid. These low-interest loans will also deliver efficiency and conservation improvements to the Pacific Northwest region’s hydroelectric system and put hundreds of people to work throughout the state.

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Commissioner Suedeen Kelly said For at least the last 5 years, BPA has been a leader in developing innovative approaches to bringing renewables online. This is another, and an impressive, act of leadership. The Pacific Northwest will reap significant benefits from the McNary-John Day transmission line, and BPA is to be commended.

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Commissioner Philip Moeller said I have been a strong proponent of building important energy infrastructure across the nation. I commend Bonneville’s leadership and decisive action on this project. Whenever needed transmission gets built, that is a good result for the nation, and in this case, a good result for the people of the Pacific Northwest.

Renewable Northwest Project Director Rachel Shimshak said We are very pleased that the federal recovery plan and BPA’s Open Season process combined to produce a meaningful and timely result for clean energy in the region.