Lake Erie Power Corp (LEPC) announced the company’s plan September 12 to build an underwater, 1000 MW, high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission project that will connect Ontario to Pennsylvania to help meet the growing demand for electricity in the region and the PJM grid.
The project, known as the Lake Erie CleanPower Connector, would bring hydroelectric, wind, solar, natural gas and nuclear energy from Ontario to the PJM grid, which supplies electricity to 13 states and the District of Columbia.
The privately funded project is estimated to cost $1 billion and take three years to build. Commissioning is targeted by the end of 2017.
“This new intertie between Canada and the United States will serve to connect the surplus clean electricity generation in the north to the growing demand in the United States,” said John Douglas, CEO of Lake Erie Power Corp. “The privately financed project will significantly improve grid stability and reliability in northern Pennsylvania.”
To complete the Lake Erie CleanPower Connector, two solid, six-inch transmission cables will be placed beneath Lake Erie, from the power field of the shut-down coal-fired station at Nanticoke to Erie County, a distance of approximately 65 miles.
Low-impact water jet technology is used to place the cable in a temporary trench barely wider than the six-inch cable itself, and is immediately filled. The technology isn’t new, LEPC emphasizes – there are a dozen similar projects installed in North America and over two hundred worldwide.
The project requires approval by 2015. To achieve this, LEPC is holding a series of meetings with local, state and federal agencies, as well as environmental groups and local residents to discuss the project and alleviate any concerns.