The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has invited the public to comment on a proposed gen-tie electric project in Carbon County, Wyoming. The BLM is weighing two options for the transmission line, one of which would involve it crossing 4.7 miles of BLM lands.
The project under consideration is the Rock Creek Wind Energy Project, which will traverse Carbon County and extend into Albany County where the Rock Creek Wind Energy facility will be situated. In its initial phase, the project will comprise 36 turbines capable of generating 190 MW of energy and an 8-mile gen tie line directed towards Foote Creek substation. The second phase anticipates an expansion to 75 turbines with a capacity to produce 400 megawatts of power, accompanied by a 37-mile gen-tie line to the Aeolus Substation. This information was detailed in the visual impact assessment draft report document from Rock Creek Wind Energy, prepared for Invenergy LLC.
According to a news release from BLM, the comment period commenced on Dec. 6 and will conclude on Jan. 5, 2024. Individuals are encouraged to participate in this period through the BLM National EPA Register.
In April 2021, Wind Watch reported that Invenergy had constructed the Ekola Flats and TSB Flats projects north of Medicine Bow. During a presentation to the Albany County Board of Commissioners on April 20, 2021, Invenergy representative Michael Svedeman stated that there were plans to transfer ownership to a Wyoming utility.
On Jan. 27, 2022, Wyoming Public Radio reported that Albany County had given approval for the sprawling 32,000-acre project. However, Commission Chair Pete Gosar requested that project managers exceed county regulations to ensure minimal environmental impacts from the project.
Invenergy is an energy company based in Chicago that was established by Michael Polsky and Jim Murphy along with six other individuals in 2001. The company expanded its operations to the UK and globally between 2013 and 2017. In the following year, Invenergy embarked on its first transmission line project, connecting four states across the Midwest. As of 2022, their projects have generated over 30 gigawatts of clean energy.
