In approving the project, the board concurred with the assessment of PJM, the federally-designated regional transmission organization for New Jersey, that the line was needed to improve the reliability of supply and to avoid anticipated violations of the reliability standards of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC).
The Susquehanna-Roseland transmission line project is a 500kV line that will run through Pennsylvania and New Jersey. PSE&G is responsible for construction of the New Jersey portion of the line, which will run from Hardwick Township in Warren county to the PSE&G substation in Roseland in Essex county.
The proposed route follows the right-of-way for an existing power line through 16 municipalities. The line is expected to be in service by the summer of 2012.
Elizabeth Randall, acting president of the NJ BPU, said: “New Jersey’s energy infrastructure is as critical to our economy as our roads and bridges. The existing transmission line was built in the 1920’s when New Jersey’s population was less than half what it is today and a refrigerator in the home was considered modern technology. This new line is an essential upgrade that will serve us for decades to come.”
The total cost of both the Pennsylvania and New Jersey portions of the line is anticipated to be between $900m and $1.3bn. Those costs, under PJM’s current rules, will be spread across all ratepayers in the PJM region, and BPU staff estimates that New Jersey residents will pay an additional $3.50 – $4 annually to fund the project.
