A high-voltage transmission line, known as Gateway West, has been approved by the Department of the Interior. The power line will stretch 900 miles across Wyoming and into western Idaho and will transport renewable and conventionally-derived energy.
Walt George with the Bureau of Land Management says the approval of two segments of the line in western Idaho have been deferred, but this won’t stop construction on the rest of the project. “The first phase which stretches from Glenrock to a substation near Downey, Idaho—segments one through four—is scheduled to begin construction in 2016,” he says. “The companies are projecting a 2 to 3 year construction period.”
The line will allow Wyoming to export energy to other states since Wyoming’s low population means it produces much more power than it can ever use. George says it will be the first high-voltage transmission line of its kind in the state.
