Duluth-based ALLETE and Grid United will be developing a new, approximately 385 mile long high voltage direct- current transmission line from central North Dakota to Colstrip, Montana.
It’s called the “North Plains Connector.”
And it will be the nation’s first transmission connection between three regional energy markets – MISO, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, the Southwest Power Pool and the Western Interconnection. The two organizations say the DC line will create another 3000 megawatts of transfer capacity.
"The grid is full," said ALLETE Vice-President of Strategy and Planning Julie Pierce. "It's full of the energy-rich resources we have been building to serve our growing loads, and new types of generation coming on and off-line."
Pierce said it is time for significant infrastructure to be built.
"The North Plains Connector really fist into that thesis, and the need for additional ways to move energy around the country," Pierce said.
The companies expect to begin the project permitting process this year for the $2.5 billion project. They’re projecting an in-service date of 2029.