Basin Electric Power Cooperative said it is working to permit and build nearly 350 miles of high-voltage transmission line in western North Dakota by the end of 2027. A total of five projects would be built at a cost of around $725 million.
One project, the Neset-to-Northshore project, which includes a 230 kV 27-mile-long transmission line and substation called Northshore between New Town and Tioga, is expected to be energized in January. Construction is slated to be completed before the end of the year.
Basin Electric serves 131 member cooperatives across nine states in the Southwest Power Pool.
The project is one of five identified and approved by the Southwest Power Pool. The Neset-to-Northshore project was identified through SPP’s Load Interconnection process and was found to be needed to support load growth specific to the Parshall, North Dakota, area.
SPP identified three projects through its annual Integrated Transmission Planning study.
The projects have been approved by Basin Electric’s board of directors and include:
Leland Olds Station-to-Tande 345-kV transmission project, which includes 175 miles of 345 kV transmission line and a new 345/115 kV substation. Pending easement acquisition and permitting, the project goal is to energize in 2025. The line is planned to start at the Leland Olds Station near Stanton and travel west to the Tande substation near Tioga.
Roundup-to-Kummer Ridge 345 kV transmission line, a 35-mile line north of Killdeer is set to be energized in 2025. Final date will depend on easement acquisition and permitting.
East Fork 345/115-kV substation near Wheelock, which is planned to intersect an existing transmission line and add a new delivery point for Basin Electric Class C member Mountrail-Williams Electric Cooperative, is set to be energized in 2024.
The fifth project, identified by SPP’s Aggregate Transmission Service process, is required to provide additional transmission capability into Saskatchewan, Canada.
Wheelock-to-Saskatchewan and Tande-to-Saskatchewan, 230-kV transmission lines, would connect to SaskPower transmission equipment at the Canadian border. The lines are approximately 50 and 60 miles in length, respectively. Basin Electric is the designated transmission owner for the upgrade in the United States, and SaskPower would complete the circuit within Canada. The project is intended to provide export and import capabilities of up to 650 MW, strengthening the local and regional electric system.
For the Leland Olds Station-to-Tande and Roundup-to-Kummer Ridge transmission lines, Basin Electric’s right-of-way team is in contact with landowners to determine the preferred routes of the lines. The right-of-way team will begin contacting landowners regarding the Wheelock- and Tande-to-Saskatchewan lines in the coming weeks, the cooperative said.
New wind capacity
In early January, South Dakota regulators approved with conditions a permit for North Bend Wind Project, a 200 MW wind energy facility proposed by ENGIE North America.
The project would be near company’s 92 tower Triple H Wind Farm and would consist of up to 71 wind turbines spread across some 47,000 acres in Hughes and Hyde County.
In mid-December, Basin Electric Power Cooperative signed a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement for output from the wind project, which is expected to enter service late this year.
New gas capacity
Separately, Basin Electric plans to build a $790 million, 583 MW natural gas-fueled power station near its existing Pioneer Generation Station northwest of Williston, North Dakota.
The project’s first phase would include 240 MW simple-cycle combustion turbine, a series of reciprocating engines totaling 108 MW, and 15 miles of 345 kilovolt transmission, all to be in service in 2025. The second phase would include a 240 MW simple-cycle combustion turbine to be in service in 2026.
Known as Pioneer Generation Station Phase IV, the project was approved by the Basin Electric board of directors in September. The cooperative submitted an application to the North Dakota Public Service Commission in October for a Certificate of Site Compatibility.
The last time Basin Electric built a project of this size was in 1984 when the 450 MW coal-fired Unit One of the Antelope Valley Station entered service.
