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As aging traditional plants in the Upper Midwest are retired, and new low-cost renewable energy is added, new transmission lines are needed to meet our customers’ growing electric needs.
Xcel Energy is proposing to add between 80 and 100 miles of new 345-kV transmission line that will connect to new and existing substations. As proposed, the new line will likely start at an existing substation near the City of Blair in Trempealeau County and connect with existing infrastructure near Eau Claire (either near the City of Owen in Clark County or the Village of Sheldon in Rusk County), and then connect to existing transmission lines to the north and east. Xcel Energy has proposed two route options for the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW) to review (see map below).
Dubbed the Western Wisconsin Transmission Connection (WWTC), the new high- voltage transmission line will bring renewable energy to customers in Wisconsin, improve long-term reliability, and help manage the energy grid as it evolves. Additionally, the project will help connect all of the 345-kV infrastructure in the state – enabling electricity to be delivered to Wisconsin customers when they need it and help maintain system resilience during severe weather.
The WWTC will help Xcel Energy manage our system’s changing electric needs now and into the future.
The Mid-Continent Independent System Operator (MISO) worked with Xcel Energy and other energy companies throughout the Upper Midwest to identify new transmission projects that can be built to manage the new energy system, including several in Minnesota and Wisconsin. These projects will connect the new low-cost renewable energy with customers, ensuring that as older plants retire, customers will continue to receive the electric service they depend on when they need it.
As much as possible, Xcel Energy expects to propose using existing transmission line corridors to lessen the impact of the new infrastructure on landowners and communities. In some cases, we will replace existing ‘single circuit’ transmission lines with new ‘double-circuit’ poles that include the existing and new transmission lines.
Xcel Energy expects the project to provide nearly $500 million in economic benefit to Wisconsin customers due to the low-cost renewable energy and system improvements to the new infrastructure will provide. When combined with ATC’s Grid Forward project in central Wisconsin, both projects are expected to deliver benefits between $648 million to $911 million.
In August 2024, Xcel Energy filed Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW). After reviewing the application, the PSCW will schedule public hearings in 2025. Xcel Energy will work with the PSCW to inform landowners and local officials when those hearing are scheduled.
