As part of a $2 billion regional electric-reliability project, Hartford’s Northeast Utilities is asking state authorities for clearance to install $218 million worth of upgraded transmission lines in eastern Connecticut.
The request, filed with the Connecticut Siting Council, would upgrade power lines on 37 miles of existing right-of-way between Lebanon and Thompson.
The project also includes substation improvements. At the state border, the project would extend into the utility service territory of the National Grid in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
The siting council has sole authority to review energy infrastructure projects.
The Interstate Reliability Project is one of four phases of the New England East-West Solution transmission project, designed to bolster the reliability of the regional power grid and ease the transport of electricity from power plants to substations.
Other phases of the $2 billion effort include the Greater Springfield Reliability Project, which includes parts of northern Connecticut; the Central Connecticut Reliability Project; and the Rhode Island Reliability Project.
Construction of the Greater Springfield project has begun. The other three phases remain in the planning and development.
Tentative service launch for all four phases is 2015.
