North America News

Latest news and developments from North America region

• Grain Belt Express transmission project to seek regulatory approval in Illinois in 2021

  December 23, 2020
  The high voltage direct current (HVDC) Grain Belt Express transmission line project, owned by Invenergy LLC, is expected to seek regulatory approval in Illinois in 2021.

• Virginia adopts energy storage regulations in line with clean energy legislation

  December 21, 2020
  The Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) has recently adopted new regulations to ensure that the state's largest utilities meet the energy storage benchmarks outlined in the state’s clean energy legislation.

• PSEG Long Island plans substation upgrade in East Shoreman and Riverside, US

  December 18, 2020
  PSEG Long Island—a subsidiary of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (PSEG)—is planning to undertake necessary upgrades to the transmission infrastructure that connects substations on the eastern end of Long Island, to accommodate the growing demand in the area.

• Ormat announces acquisition of energy storage asset in Texas

  December 17, 2020
  US-based Ormat Technologies Inc. recently announced the acquisition of a shovel-ready (about to begin construction soon) energy storage asset in Upton County, Texas, from Con Edison Development—engaged in the development of renewable and energy infrastructure assets throughout the US.

• Ventolines bags consultancy contract for Massachusetts offshore wind project

  December 17, 2020
  The Netherlands-headquartered Ventolines has got on board as the offshore wind expertise partner for the Mayflower Wind Project in Massachusetts, USA.

• Shell and EDF submit 2.3 GW offshore wind bid in New Jersey

  December 16, 2020
  In light of New Jersey seeking to award about 1,200-2,400 MW of offshore wind energy projects as part of its second solicitation, Atlantic Shore Offshore Wind—a 50-50 joint venture between EDF Renewables North America and Shell New Energies US LLC—has submitted its proposal to the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to supply the state with up to 2,300 MW of offshore wind energy.

• New York to commence development of 100 MW BESS

  December 15, 2020
  174 Power Global, a California-based solar energy company, and Con Edison, an investor-owned utility (IOU), have announced the signing of a seven-year dispatch rights agreement for the development of a 100 MW battery energy storage system (BESS)—the East River Energy Storage System—in Astoria, Queens.

• NYPA approves ten-year plan for decarbonising New York State

  December 14, 2020
  New York Power Authority’s (NYPA) board of trustees approved a ten-year strategic plan—VISION2030—for decarbonising New York State’s energy infrastructure.

• TVA seeks comments on proposed transmission line

  December 11, 2020
  The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is seeking public input on upgrades to its transmission system, which involves the construction of a 34-mile (55-km), 161 kV power line to meet the growing power demand and increase power reliability in the Macon, Scooba, and DeKalb areas in Mississippi.

• FirstEnergy nears completion of transmission line upgrade in Northeast Ohio

  December 10, 2020
  FirstEnergy Corporation and its subsidiaries are nearing the completion of work to rebuild and modernise an existing 138 kV power line, which is expected to enhance service reliability for Ohio Edison’s customers in Portage and Trumbull counties.

• Canadian Hydro-Quebec launches EVLO Energy Storage Inc. [free access]

  December 9, 2020
  Canadian Hydro-Québec has launched EVLO Energy Storage Inc.—a subsidiary that designs, sells, and operates safe, efficient and sustainable energy storage systems.

• Delays in NECEC project will lead to increased costs for CMP

  December 8, 2020
  A six-month delay in bringing the proposed New England Clean Energy Connect (NECEC) project online would cost Central Maine Power (CMP) an additional USD31 million, while a one-year delay would raise this figure to USD37 million.

• US DoE requests information on offshore wind transmission integration research needs

  December 4, 2020
  The US Department of Energy’s (DoE) Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) has launched a Request for Information (RFI) process regarding the research needs for integration of large-scale offshore wind energy generation into the transmission grid.

• Rocky Mountain Power completes key component of Gateway West power line

  December 4, 2020
  Rocky Mountain Power—a subsidiary of PacifiCorp—has recently announced that it has completed the construction of a key segment of its Gateway West transmission line project.

• Line rebuild task underway in central New York

  December 3, 2020
  Transmission line rebuild work is underway in central New York to reduce outages in National Grid’s service territory—an electric transmission and distribution (T&D) and nature gas supply utility in New York.

• CMP to delay NECEC project by several weeks [free access]

  December 2, 2020
  Central Maine Power Company (CMP), a subsidiary of Avangrid Networks Inc., has recently announced the delay of its USD1 billion New England Clean Energy Connect (NECEC) transmission line project by several weeks, in the wake of establishing the project special purpose vehicle (SPV)—NECEC LLC—which will own and operate the project.

• Meshed offshore transmission grid may work best for New York

  November 27, 2020
  A preliminary analysis conducted by the Norwegian DNV GL—an international accredited registrar and classification society—has revealed that a mesh and backbone network design would prove to be the most appropriate for integrating offshore wind into the New York grid, despite its higher costs than a business-as-usual (BAU) radial approach.

• New York IOUs outline USD17 billion in transmission upgrades by 2030

  November 26, 2020
  On November 2, 2020, some of New York’s investor-owned utilities (IOUs), jointly filed a report on transmission and distribution (T&D) investment in New York.

• NYPA completes work on first section of Smart Path Transmission Project

  November 25, 2020
  The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has recently completed work on the first 21-mile (34-km) section of the first phase of the Moses–Adirondack Smart Path Reliability Project.

• ISO-NE proposes pilot study for energy transition in New England

  November 24, 2020
  The Independent System Operator-New England (ISO-NE) is proposing a pilot study in entire New England for its ‘Transmission Planning for Clean Energy Transition’ effort, which would test grid performance assumptions under scenarios of high renewable energy (RE) penetration and quantify trade-offs between transmission investment and less system flexibility.