MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — NextEra Energy Transmission is looking for public comment Monday on the proposed Mid-Atlantic Resiliency Link.
NextEra Energy Transmission Senior Director Kaitland McCormick said they plan to build a new transmission line to help meet the needs of the future and increase reliability.
“To help make sure the electricity around our grid continues to provide safe and reliable electric power,” McCormick said Monday on WAJR’s “Talk of the Town.” “As the demand for power increases throughout the region, some of the old power plants are retired.”
McCormick said the line (MARL) would run from Greene County, Pennsylvania, through Monongalia and Preston Counties, into Western Maryland and then back to the Mountain State before going into Virginia.
The route for the line is expected to stay close to the northern end of Monongalia County where zoning regulations are expected to create fewer challenges during construction.
“Our Mid-Atlantic Resiliency Link is a 105-mile, 500 kV transmission line and a major energy backbone to come into the region,” McCormick said. “In addition to that, we’ll be building a new substation in Frederick County, Virginia.”
The electrical transmission lines for the 13-state region from Michigan to Tennessee and from Delaware to Illinois are managed by PJM Interconnection. The region includes the nation’s capital, an area PJM expects to see a huge increase in demand for electricity associated with data centers.
“They do reliability projects, and they do them based on forecast future needs throughout the system,” McCormick said. “This project is meant to address potential future challenges in the grid to make sure safe and reliable power continues.”
The Morgantown public meeting is from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Monday at the Erickson Alumni Center.
“We’ll have maps set up in the room with a number of poster displays,” McCormick said.