Prairie Wind Transmission LLC has announced an agreement with ITC Great Plains LLC, Sunflower Electric Power Corp. and Mid-Kansas Electric Co. regarding the segments of a proposed 765 kV transmission project each company will construct in Kansas.
The effectiveness of the agreement is contingent on approval by the Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC). The project will span from the Wichita area into western Kansas and will be the first extra-high-voltage transmission lines west of the Mississippi River.
Under the agreement, Prairie Wind Transmission will be responsible for constructing a new 765/345 kV substation near Wichita, Kan.; a new 765/345 kV substation northeast of Medicine Lodge, Kan., near the new Flat Ridge Wind Farm jointly owned by Westar Energy and BP Alternative; and a 765 kV transmission line to connect the two new substations. Prairie Wind also will be responsible for constructing a 765 kV line south to the Oklahoma border.
ITC Great Plains will be responsible for constructing a 345/138 kV substation next to Prairie Wind's new substation near Medicine Lodge, Kan.; a new 765/345 kV substation in Comanche County, Kan.; a new 765/345 kV substation near Spearville, Kan.; a new 765 kV line from the Medicine Lodge substation to the Comanche County substation; and a new 765 kV line from the Comanche County substation to the new Spearville substation.
The project is consistent with plans to enhance access to lower-cost electric power markets, improve the efficiency of the electric grid, improve reliability and enable development of renewable energy.
Before the project can move forward, Prairie Wind must receive all necessary regulatory and Southwest Power Pool (SPP) approvals, including regional funding. Upon receiving regulatory and SPP approval, Prairie Wind Transmission will proceed with a line-siting application at the KCC. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission unanimously approved Prairie Wind Transmission's request for key rate components for the project in December 2008.
SOURCE: Westar Energy Inc.
