Ground has been broken on a new 500-kilovolt high-voltage transmission line connecting Southern California and central Arizona.
Ten West Link, approved for construction by the Department of the Interior in July 2022, will deliver “clean, reliable, affordable electricity,” a Jan. 19 news release said.
Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm and National Climate Adviser Ali Zaidi attended the groundbreaking Jan. 19 “at the construction site of the fifth transmission structure along what will ultimately be a 125-mile transmission line.”
“The Ten West Link will accelerate our nation’s transition to a clean energy economy by unlocking renewable resources, creating jobs, lowering costs and boosting local economies,” Haaland said in the release.
“Through robust engagement with states, cities and tribes, the Biden-Harris administration is committed to diversifying the nation’s renewable energy portfolio while at the same time combatting climate change and investing in communities,” she added.
“The project will have a conductor capacity to transmit 3,200 megawatts (MW) of solar capacity and provide interconnection capability for new energy projects located in the region,” the release said. “It is expected to be operational by the end of 2023.”
Delaney Colorado River Transmission was authorized to begin construction of the line by a Bureau of Land Management notice to proceed, according to a July 14, 2022, release. Existing substations near Tonopah, Arizona, and Blythe, California, will be connected.
According to 12news.com, the Ten West project is an attempt to give Californians and Arizona residents more reliable power, but it is also a nod toward the potential for future development of wind and solar farms. The project is infrastructure that will be in place and potentially be appealing to companies for future development.
“The line will go along the same route as the Devers-Palo Verde 500 kV transmission line, which runs from Tonopah's Harquahala substation to the Devers substation in North Palm Springs, California,” AZ Central said. “It traverses public land managed by the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Land Management and Bureau of Reclamation as well as the U.S. Army's Yuma Proving Ground.”
The project’s planning documents are available online.
The Ten West Link project will give customers in California and Arizona reliable power and provide transmission infrastructure for future development of “utility-scale solar energy resources,” the Jan. 19 release said.
“Arizona, this project demonstrates a very important point," Vice President Harris said. "It shows when we invest in climate we also invest in families, in communities, in opportunity and prosperity for all people. When we invest in climate, we invest in America."
Harris spoke at the groundbreaking ceremony, which was attended by more than 100 people, according to AZ Central.
