Federal authorities have given final approval to a 214-mile power line expected to carry wind-generated electricity between central Montana and Alberta.
The $150 million Montana-Alberta Tie line would carry up to 300 megawatts of power in each direction between Great Falls and Lethbridge, Alberta.
On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Energy issued a permit authorizing its construction - the last major regulatory hurdle remaining for the project. State environmental officials signed off on the transmission line in October.
Contracts are in place with three companies - Wind Hunter, NaturEner and Invenergy - that want to use the line's 600 megawatts of capacity for several planned wind farms.
The transmission line, known as MATL, is proposed by Tonbridge Power Inc. of Toronto. The company is finalizing a $90 million construction loan and has customer agreements to prepay $35 million in future revenues toward the cost of the project.
"It's an investment in the future that will help strengthen the power supply in both markets, and provide a way for clean, renewable wind energy to get to market," said MATL vice president Bob Williams.
Tonbridge plans to begin construction next spring and complete the line roughly a year later. Williams said the company has reached right-of-way agreements with about a quarter of the 440 property owners whose land will be crossed by the line.
A pending court appeal brought by farmers in Canada threatens to delay the project if the farmers prevail. A hearing in the case is scheduled for Jan. 16, Williams said.
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The Emperor still has no clothes, and wind power is probably the largest scam since the Nigerian scam. If only 25% of the 440 landowners are on line, I smell eminent domain. Why aren't the Montana farmers doing what the Canadians are doing to protect their properties? Best of luck to you folks in Canada.
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