TransWest Express LLC has selected Siemens Energy Inc. to supply the high-voltage direct current transmission technology for the TransWest Express Transmission Project (TWE Project).
The TWE Project is a 732-mile high-voltage interregional transmission system with HVDC and HVAC segments that will connect to the existing grid in Wyoming and Utah as well as directly to the ISO Controlled Grid in southern Nevada.
Under a preferred supplier agreement, TransWest and Siemens Energy are partners on the final design, specifications and other technical elements of the HVDC converter stations to be located in Carbon County, Wyo., and in Millard County, Utah. TransWest and Siemens Energy also are negotiating a definitive contract under which Siemens Energy will engineer, procure and construct the HVDC converter stations and ancillary equipment and systems.
“This key partnership helps assure the TWE Project will be built with the most advanced technology, will remain on schedule due to reserved manufacturing slots and resources, and will be energized in 2027,” said Bill Miller, CEO of TransWest.
“The TWE Project is important new transmission infrastructure that will accelerate the incorporation of renewables onto the U.S. grid. It represents the first major use of HVDC technology in the U.S. to deliver onshore wind power and will significantly advance the nation’s net-zero goals,” says Tim Holt, member of the executive board of Siemens Energy. “We are pleased to collaborate for the successful delivery of the TWE Project and to showcase our leadership in VSC technology solutions.”
The federal government identified the TWE Project in 2011 as a national priority to permit and complete. The project will connect wind energy from Wyoming, home of the best winds in the continental United States, into California and other western renewable energy markets, as well as increase the resilience and reliability of the entire western power grid.
