LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A new electric transmission line is coming to Nevada.
On Monday, the U.S. Energy Department announced they were setting aside $1.3 billion to pay for three transmission lines that would cross six states: Arizona, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Utah, and Vermont.
According to department officials, the three projects would add about 3.5 gigawatts of additional grid capacity and create more than 13,000 direct and indirect jobs.
The Nevada-Utah Cross-Tie 500kV Transmission Line Project would be about 214 miles and connect existing transmission systems to "increase transmission capacity, improve grid reliability and resilience, relieve congestion on other key transmission lines, and expand access to low-cost renewable energy across the region."
The Bureau of Land Management said the line would connect the Clover Substation in central Utah with the Robinson Summit Substation in east-central Nevada.
The Energy Department said the Utah-Nevada line would put about $761 million into the economy and generate about $9.1 million per year for the region through project development income taxes.
In addition to that, department officials said it could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 19.5 million tons of CO2 between 2028 and 2050 or about 850,000 tons per year by "lowering curtailments of existing renewable generation and enabling the development of new solar and wind resources."
According to the department, construction is expected to start in the first quarter of 2025.
This is separate from NV Energy's Green link Nevada project, which officials previously said is about 11 months behind. That project was initially proposed in July 2020 and proposed lines have been estimated to be in service by early 2027.
State officials have set the goal of at least 50% of the electricity utilities sell to Nevada customers must come from renewable sources by 2030. They're also aiming to have zero net carbon emissions by 2050.
