South Plains transmission lines energized by wind

SOUTH PLAINS – Hundreds of miles of high-voltage transmission lines are set to be placed and powered up in 2013 as part of a $7 billion statewide project to transmit West Texas’ renewable energy to the state’s urban centers in the east.

The project will build about 2,400 miles of high-voltage transmission lines, including 200 miles crossing South Plains counties to create a grid expected to be completed by 2013. There are three transmission line projects in progress in the South Plains, according to the Public Utility Commission of Texas.

Wind Energy Transmission of Texas expects its West Texas lines, including a 74-mile stretch from Dickens County to Scurry County, to be finished by mid-2013.

Construction on the Silverton to Cottonwood line is about 27 percent complete, with about 20 of its 65 miles of high-voltage line installed. The project’s estimated cost is $113 million, with an estimated completion date in December 2012.

Other projects in the South Plains include the 74-mile Cottonwood to Dermott line from Dickens to Scurry County southeast of Lubbock, estimated at $142 million, and the 46-mile Nazareth to Silverton line from Castro County to Briscoe County. Both had no miles completed by July but were expected to be finished by December 2013.