<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1BuIed_0wAaH18S00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1BuIed_0wAaH18S00" width="480" height="545" ><p>The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) has identified 13 new transmission substation and line projects designed to reinforce the Pacific Northwest’s electric grid. If constructed, these projects would accommodate regional load growth and enable the BPA to add thousands of megawatts of new wind and solar generation, and battery storage to the federal grid. Combined, the projects are estimated to cost approximately $3 billion. The projects would add to a list of other projects the BPA announced in July 2023, bringing the total to more than 20 with an estimated cost of approximately $5 billion. “BPA continues to answer the call to meet the region’s transmission needs driven by electrification, clean energy goals, and growing energy demand,” John Hairston, administrator and CEO of the BPA, said in a statement. “Consistent, steady energy infrastructure investments such as these will help the region maintain reliability and a strong economy fueled by clean energy. This work would not be possible without the $10 billion increase in Treasury borrowing authority championed by the Northwest Congressional delegation.” Congress included the $10 billion increase Hairston mentioned in the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, raising the BPA’s borrowing authority with the U.S. Treasury to $17.7 billion. The BPA said borrowing authority works like a revolving line of credit and is the agency’s primary source of debt financing for capital investments, including transmission.</p><h2>The BPA’s Role</h2><p>The BPA is a Federal Power Marketing Administration headquartered in Portland, Oregon. It serves a 300,000 square mile area that includes Oregon, Washington, Idaho, western Montana, and parts of northern California, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming. The BPA markets electric power, provides transmission, and supports development of energy conservation throughout the region. Specifically, it markets the electric power produced from 31 Federal hydroelectric projects operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation. Together, the 31 Federal hydro projects produce a total of about 8,593 MW in an average water year. The BPA also acquires non-Federal power, including the power from one nuclear power plant—the Columbia Generating Station—to meet the needs of its customer utilities. The BPA maintains and operates more than 15,000 circuit miles of transmission lines and associated facilities over which this electric power is delivered. Its system is a substantial majority of the Northwest’s high-voltage electric grid. It is the BPA’s responsibility to plan for and fund the development, operations, and maintenance of this system, while also preserving and enhancing physical security, cybersecurity, and overall system resilience. The BPA is fully self-financed, issues bonds directly to the U.S. Treasury, and receives no direct annual appropriations for operations. Its power rates and transmission rates are set to recover its costs. Meanwhile, the BPA also funds the protection, mitigation, and enhancement of fish and wildlife affected by the development and operation of the hydropower system as part of its efforts to preserve and balance the economic and environmental benefits of the Federal Columbia River Power System.</p></div></body>

Mountain View, CA

NewsBreak

$3B in Transmission Substation and Line Projects Proposed in Pacific Northwest

The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) has identified 13 new transmission substation and line projects designed to reinforce the Pacific Northwest’s electric grid. If constructed, these projects would accommodate regional load growth and enable the BPA to add thousands of megawatts of new wind and solar generation, and battery storage to the federal grid. Combined, the projects are estimated to cost approximately $3 billion. The projects would add to a list of other projects the BPA announced in July 2023, bringing the total to more than 20 with an estimated cost of approximately $5 billion. “BPA continues to answer the call to meet the region’s transmission needs driven by electrification, clean energy goals, and growing energy demand,” John Hairston, administrator and CEO of the BPA, said in a statement. “Consistent, steady energy infrastructure investments such as these will help the region maintain reliability and a strong economy fueled by clean energy. This work would not be possible without the $10 billion increase in Treasury borrowing authority championed by the Northwest Congressional delegation.” Congress included the $10 billion increase Hairston mentioned in the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, raising the BPA’s borrowing authority with the U.S. Treasury to $17.7 billion. The BPA said borrowing authority works like a revolving line of credit and is the agency’s primary source of debt financing for capital investments, including transmission.