The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) has approved an application by the Electric Transmission Texas, LLC and Sharyland Utilities, L.P. to build a 345-kilovolt (KV) transmission line, which would run approximately 96-miles from a substation northwest of the city of Edinburg to a substation located east of Brownsville. It is estimated that the total cost will be $309 million and be completed during the summer of 2016.
“When we first filed our joint application in July 2013, we emphasized that this transmission line is needed to ensure continued reliable electric service for the Lower Rio Grande Valley, which is forecast to have continued electrical demand growth,” said ETT President Calvin Crowder. “The need has grown since then, and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) has determined the project is critical for the reliability of the ERCOT system and the Brownsville area.”
Sharyland’s president Mark Caskey has commented that the project will improve both reliability and stability of the Lower Rio Grande Valley grid and will provide a real “engine for economic growth in communities throughout the region.”
Since January 2012, ERCOT has endorsed the program and ETT and Sharyland have performed an environmental assessment and routing analysis for the proposed transmission line.