Californian water utility commits
to transmission for renewables
Oct 26, 2007 - Renewable Energy Focus
EL CENTRO, California - A water utility in southern
California will construct a transmission line to tap
into 1,600 MW of geothermal and solar capacity.
The Imperial Irrigation District Board of Directors
will build a 32-mile, 230 kV dedicated transmission
line from the Salton Sea to connect a proposed project
of the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power and
one of San Diego Gas & Electric. LADWP’s Green Path
North and SDG&E’s Green Path Southwest links are still
in the proposal stages, although the latter application
is before the California Public Utilities Commission
for approval early next year.
The IID’s decision is unilateral and the Salton-Midway
project is not dependent on the other projects and
utilities, the water utility explains. The link is
necessary for the utility’s own needs, regardless
of what else is built.
The board resolution, ‘Incentives to Interconnect
& Export Renewable Resources,’ commits the utility
and the district to advancing California’s renewable
energy goals by acting as a catalyst for the transmission
of new geothermal, solar and wind-powered generation
proposed for the region.
The resolution contains two components, said IID
board President Stella Mendoza, both of which are
intended to facilitate the development and export
of renewable energy from the Imperial Valley to the
Southern California coastal plain. The transmission
corridor would offer 1,600 MW of green power export
capacity from the Salton Sea area.
“By adopting this resolution, the IID is placing
itself at the vanguard of change in harnessing and
transmitting renewable resources within its control
area,” explains president Stella Mendoza. “We see
this as a win/win for IID ratepayers and the entire
state.”
The district delivers water to 140,000 customers
over 450,000 acres of farmland in southern California.
It is the largest irrigation district in the U.S.
and its electrical division has become the sixth largest
consumer-owned utility in the state.
The transmission line is a ten-year project that
will require a number of further actions and incremental
efforts, say officials. The number of renewable power
developers and the level of interest will determine
how quickly the project gets built.
The IID board also amended its open access transmission
tariff to incorporate provisions dealing with interconnection
agreements. The new OATT, which was revised in consultation
with green power generators operating in the region,
will provide more uniformity in the planning, processing
and scheduling of new interconnections into the IID
transmission system.
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