DOI Approves 230-kV Line to Carry Solar Power to Calif. Grid

The Department of the Interior (DOI) last week approved a transmission line on public lands that will connect a 250-MW solar power project to the grid in California. The line will connect to the Imperial Solar Energy Center West Project in Imperial County.

Proposed by CSOLAR Development, the transmission line will be placed in an area already designated as a transmission corridor. The above-ground 230-kV transmission line will carry power five miles to the existing Imperial Valley Substation and will be located on 65 acres of DOI-managed lands.

Earlier this month, the DOI approved the Desert Sunlight Solar Farm, a 550-MW project also in the California desert. In July, the agency approved two other utility-scale solar developments in the state, a wind energy project in Oregon, and a transmission line in Southern California.

Sources: POWERnews, DOI