Following more than two years of public outreach with local residents, American Transmission Co. has filed an application with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin seeking approval for the Spring Valley-North Lake Geneva Transmission Line Project.
The project includes the construction of a new 138,000-volt transmission line from the North Lake Geneva Substation in southern Walworth County to the Spring Valley Substation in western Kenosha County. ATC’s preferred route is approximately 25 miles and runs primarily along Highway 50. This option also includes construction of a new substation, called Balsam Substation, on an ATC-owned parcel along Highway 50 in the Town of Wheatland. A new 69-kV transmission line along County Highway O would connect the new substation to the existing Twin Lakes Substation in Twin Lakes. The alternate route is longer at approximately 34 miles and it follows a more southerly route from the North Lake Geneva Substation through Bloomfield and Twin Lakes, veering north along County Highway O, then west along County Highway K before tracking south to connect with the Spring Valley Substation.
“Additional electricity is needed in this area to ensure electric system reliability, especially since the population in the region is increasing,” said Doug Berton, ATC project manager. “In addition, when other lines in the region need to be taken out of service for maintenance, or there is an unplanned outage, this project would provide redundancy to help ensure that the lights stay on.”
The PSC will conduct a comprehensive review of ATC’s application, including the two proposed route options. The PSC’s regulatory review process includes conducting technical and public hearings that likely will be held in fall 2015, with a final decision expected in 2016. The PSC will notify local residents and businesses of the dates and times of the hearings, which provide the public an opportunity to make their concerns known to the decision makers.
The project is estimated to cost $71 million to $91 million. If the project is approved, construction would begin in 2017 to meet an in-service date of 2019. Additional information, including a copy of the application, can be found on the PSC’s website under Docket No. 137-CE-167.
