Trans-Allegheny Interstate Line Company (TrAILCo) has announced that Administrative Law Judges have recommended that the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission not authorize the construction of the Trans-Allegheny Interstate Line (TrAIL) in Pennsylvania.

The judges’ decision is a recommendation only. TrAILCo is currently reviewing the recommended decision, and will provide comments to the Commission as part of the regulatory process.

“We are extremely disappointed in this administrative recommendation, which runs counter to the evidence presented. PJM Interconnection, the independent regional organization responsible for transmission planning, determined that this line was necessary for the reliable supply of electricity to homes and businesses throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, and mandated its construction,” said Paul J. Evanson, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Allegheny Energy. “We intend to vigorously pursue construction of this line with the Commission, particularly the one-mile section that is essential to regional reliability.”

Allegheny has both a legal and public service obligation to provide customers with adequate infrastructure to maintain a reliable electric system. TrAIL is crucial to this mission.

The judges’ recommendation to the Commission pertains to both Pennsylvania segments of the proposed 500-kilovolt transmission line, including:

• A one-mile portion of the 502 Junction to Loudoun (Va.) line that is critical to the integrity of the electric grid for the entire Mid-Atlantic region, and
• A 36-mile segment from 502 Junction to a new substation in Washington County called Prexy that is necessary to provide reliable electric service to consumers in Southwestern Pennsylvania.

Previously, the Public Service Commission of West Virginia approved construction of TrAIL, and a Hearing Examiner in Virginia recommended that regulators in that state authorize construction of the Virginia segments. Both the Commission and the Hearing Examiner found that a clear need exists for the 502 Junction to Loudoun (Va.) segment of the project to maintain electric reliability throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.