Powering up

QUINCY — The preliminary design phase for a new electrical transmission line from Wanapum Dam to Quincy should be starting in July. It’s part of a larger Grant County PUD project to increase electrical availability in the Quincy area, but Jeff Grizzel, the PUD’s chief operations officer, said getting the electricity to Quincy is only part of the equation.

“We have a very long list of customers who either want to expand in the Quincy area because they’re already there, or new customers who want to locate in the Quincy area,” Grizzel said. “And right now, if you look at that list and add up all the service requests in terms of how many megawatts they’re asking for, the (project being planned) will help many of those requests, but not all of them.”

The “Quincy Transmission Expansion Plan” – or QTEP – includes more 230-kilovolt transmission lines northeast and northwest of Quincy, along with the 230kv line from Wanapum Dam.

“The project includes transmission as well as a new switchyard and some other elements. We tend to focus on the transmission, but it’s not just transmission,” Grizzel said.

Total project cost is estimated at about $163 million.

The transmission line from Wanapum Dam will be about 30 miles long, with construction scheduled for 2027 and completion in 2028. Grizzel said the route selected provides what he called the lowest total cost of ownership over the life of the transmission. It’s expected to be in service for about 50 years, he said.

The proposed route crosses a lot of private land.

“The last time we looked, we’re estimating there are 93 different landowners along the route,” Grizzel said.

The Wanapum Dam-to-Quincy project was the subject of a lengthy public meeting in April that prompted lots of questions from landowners along the route. Jason Stordahl, the project manager, said not all of those questions can be answered yet because the project is still in its beginning stages.

The first task was surveying the route, Stordahl said, which is scheduled for completion this month. The next phase will be developing a design and preparing the project schedule and budget, a process called 30% completion. That’s scheduled to be done by October, Stordahl said.

“At the end of 30% design, that’s when we would start reaching out (to landowners), because then you know where the line is and poles are going to be located,” Stordahl said.

Grizzel said people have expressed concern about the Wanapum Dam line’s possible proximity to homes or outbuildings, and that pole placement could affect land use. Stordahl and Grizzel said the 30% design phase is the time to address those concerns.

“When we get to that 30% design, we actually have something to show the landowners,” Grizzel said. “We can sit down with them and show them where the transmission poles will be located, what they’ll look like, where the lines will be, and then they can point out to us any concerns they have. Whether it’s concerns about impacts to farming operations, or safety concerns regarding their homes or outbuildings, we can work with them to mitigate those issues.”

The design of the lines east and west of Quincy has reached the 30% design phase.

“We’ve begun to reach out to obtain right of entry, look at where the poles will be located and start speaking with landowners about that,” Stordahl said.

Changes are still possible at this phase of the project, he said.

“There are still some changes we can make. We can work with concerns,” Stordahl said.

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at cschweizer@columbiabasinherald.com.

By the numbers:

Total estimated cost: $163M

Length: About 30 miles

Construction: 2027-2028

Landowners: 93

Lifespan: About 50 years

Capacity: 230kv