PUC told Hill Country transmission line is necessary
The Boerne Star|October 6, 2010
Without the proposed McCamey D-to-Kendall-to-Gillespie line, roughly 1,834 gigawatt-hours per year of wind power would not reach the people who need it, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) report filed with the PUC Sept. 27.
Without the proposed McCamey D-to-Kendall-to-Gillespie line, roughly 1,834 gigawatt-hours per year of wind power would not reach the people who need it, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) report filed with the PUC Sept. 27.
There are no alternatives to a contested wind power transmission line through the Texas Hill Country, the operator of the state's power grid told the Public Utilities Commission last week.
The proposed line from a substation in Schleicher County to one in Kendall County and on to Fredericksburg is part of a $5 billion project designed to meet a state legislative mandate to transmit wind-generated power 2,400 miles from West Texas to under-served urban areas in Central and East Texas.
Without the proposed McCamey D-to-Kendall-to-Gillespie line, roughly 1,834 gigawatt-hours per year of wind power would not reach the people who need it, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) report filed with the PUC Sept. 27.
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... more [truncated due to possible copyright]There are no alternatives to a contested wind power transmission line through the Texas Hill Country, the operator of the state's power grid told the Public Utilities Commission last week.
The proposed line from a substation in Schleicher County to one in Kendall County and on to Fredericksburg is part of a $5 billion project designed to meet a state legislative mandate to transmit wind-generated power 2,400 miles from West Texas to under-served urban areas in Central and East Texas.
Without the proposed McCamey D-to-Kendall-to-Gillespie line, roughly 1,834 gigawatt-hours per year of wind power would not reach the people who need it, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) report filed with the PUC Sept. 27.
The ERCOT study found that an existing NextERA transmission line bringing wind energy from Taylor and Nolan counties to the Kendall substation would not be a viable substitute for the new line the Lower Colorado River Authority proposes to build. State Sen. Troy Fraser, R-Horseshoe Bay, urged the PUC and ERCOT to study that alternative.
There was one bright spot for area landowners opposing the line. According to the ERCOT study, upgrading the Kendall Substation would eliminate the need for the 30-mile stretch of transmission line from Comfort to Gillespie County. ERCOT estimated the upgrade at $8 million, compared to $54 million to build the proposed line.
ERCOT also supported an earlier study that showed upgrading existing lines in the Kendall County area would lower the cost of the Gillespie-to-Newton portion of the line from $136 million for new construction to $39 million.
Proposed routes for the McKamey D-to-Kendall-to-Gillespie transmission line were submitted to the PUC July 28 by the Lower Colorado River Authority Transmission Services Corporation (LCRA TSC). Since then, 1,018 interveners have opposed the project. Landowners, local governments and Hill County preservation groups such as Clear View Alliance say the proposed new transmission line's 180-foot-tall towers will devalue Hill Country property, deface the landscape, threaten wildlife habitat and hurt the economy.