TFFF. Transmission Fantasy Fan Fiction can be the only explanation for this article in S&P Global. Some "researcher" with degrees in meteorology and mechanical engineering did some "research" into possible transmission projects and came up with something that can only be an unholy cross between fan fiction and fantasy sports.
This is not new information that we don't know about. It's simply the fantasy creation of an unqualified "researcher" who was too lazy to consider the actual status of dead transmission ideas, or to find out what regional transmission organizations are planning. And I'm pretty sure he doesn't even know the difference between regionally planned, cost allocated lines and merchant transmission.
First, there's this:
This is not new information that we don't know about. It's simply the fantasy creation of an unqualified "researcher" who was too lazy to consider the actual status of dead transmission ideas, or to find out what regional transmission organizations are planning. And I'm pretty sure he doesn't even know the difference between regionally planned, cost allocated lines and merchant transmission.
First, there's this:
Perhaps the most noteworthy transmission project in NextEra's portfolio is the Oklahoma/Arkansas portion of the Plains and Eastern Clean Line high-voltage direct-current, or HVDC, project. The project has had a tumultuous history, with the Tennessee Valley Authority backing away from the project in 2017 and the Energy Department terminating its participation in 2018. NextEra acquired Plains and Eastern Clean Line Oklahoma LLC in late 2017. Connecting Oklahoma and the state's formidable wind generation to Tennessee, the line would help alleviate growing wind curtailment in SPP while delivering potentially low-cost wind energy to the Southeast region. The project's status is up in the air.
HVDC transmission lines such as the Plains and Eastern Clean Line could emerge as a crucial piece of the clean energy transition. Although typically more costly than their AC counterparts, HVDC lines can carry more capacity across long distances while mitigating electricity losses, allowing for the transfer of wind and solar power from sparsely populated regions to urban metropolises hundreds of miles away. The Plains and Eastern Clean Line would run 720 miles and carry more than 4,000 MW of energy.
Adam, you complete and utter dumbass! NextEra only bought the Oklahoma portion of the project, which was only nothing more than an idea and a random collection of transmission easement options. I'm pretty sure NextEra's intended use for that project has long ago expired. More importantly, any easements Clean Line acquired in Arkansas have since been released back to the property owner. There is no transmission project across Arkansas, so there is no connection. This is just one guy's stupidity and lazy "research". It doesn't mean Plains & Eastern is coming back. It's dead. Forever dead.
And then there's this:
And then there's this:
Additionally, a handful of major HVDC transmission projects are in planning, with renewable integration and transmission serving as a major driver for their development. The 550-mile SunZia Southwest Transmission Project being developed by Pattern Energy Group LP would connect Arizona to New Mexico, which has become a hub for renewable energy development. The 780-mile Grain Belt Express transmission line runs from Kansas to Indiana, eventually hooking up with the Pioneer Transmission project. Being developed by Invenergy LLC, the $7 billion project is expected to have a potential capacity of 5,000 MW.
MISO recently announced a major transmission upgrade project expected to cost $10.3 billion. The undertaking involves upgrading 18 different transmission lines and will reportedly help support 53 GW of new wind, solar and battery storage capacity across the region.
No, there is not a new project being built to connect with GBE. Pioneer Transmission is an old idea that was never finished. This three segment project, dreamed up in the early teens, seems to have been abandoned after the building of just one segment. According to its owner:
The remaining phases of the Project ("Segments 2 and 3") are under evaluation by MISO and PJM as part of the next planning review cycles.
Which means they are stuck in regional planning cycles that they'll probably never get out of. And why should PJM or MISO ratepayers pay to construct the sections of the project that connect with the Sullivan substation? GBE wants to connect at Sullivan, and if that interconnection is ever approved, GBE would be required to pay to construct these segments so that its project doesn't overload the transmission system. This is why this "connection" imagined by a really bad "researcher" is never going to happen.
The problem with this "research" is that the author is lazy or incompetent, or both. He didn't look in the right places to find out the actual likelihood of the outdated project ideas he found on some old list and tried to click together like mismatched Legos. Sort of reminds me of this complete and utter doofus, who gushed about "investment opportunities" for merchant transmission projects but actually had no idea what he was talking about. No wonder our economy and investments are in the toilet with "researchers" like that advising us!
The transmission fantasy fan fiction "report" concludes like this:
The problem with this "research" is that the author is lazy or incompetent, or both. He didn't look in the right places to find out the actual likelihood of the outdated project ideas he found on some old list and tried to click together like mismatched Legos. Sort of reminds me of this complete and utter doofus, who gushed about "investment opportunities" for merchant transmission projects but actually had no idea what he was talking about. No wonder our economy and investments are in the toilet with "researchers" like that advising us!
The transmission fantasy fan fiction "report" concludes like this:
Major transmission projects, particularly those that span multiple states, get caught up in arduous siting and permitting processes. The Grain Belt Express project, for instance, has been in the making for over a decade now. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is taking steps to ameliorate these preliminary planning hurdles. Still, without continuous diligent efforts to expedite grid infrastructure upgrades, industry stakeholders will struggle to meet state and federal clean energy goals.
Adam, you ignoramus. There's nothing FERC planning can do for the Grain Belt Express. It's a merchant transmission project. It is not part of any FERC-jurisdictional plan. We don't need to "expedite" transmission. The only rush here is big wind and big solar developers trying to fill their pockets with big government cash before this big charade comes crashing down on their big heads. Wind and solar are not sustainable energy sources. We cannot power our nation with only solar and wind. Even pretending we can is wasting trillions of dollars attempting to build new transmission to connect it all. Energy generation is much like fashion fads. Big wind is already going out of fashion in favor of big solar. Even GBE is now claiming that it will bring Kansas solar and wind to eastern states. The next big thing is out there. Let's hope it arrives before we waste too much money chasing transmission fantasy fan fiction stories.
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