How Oregon plans to handle ‘staggering’ demand for new transmission lines

Oregon ’s need for clean energy is expected to grow exponentially thanks to rising demand for electricity from data centers, heat pumps, electric cars and state climate mandates.

The region faces a major hurdle to expanding the energy flow: It doesn’t have enough transmission lines to connect the projects into the electric grid and carry electricity to homes and businesses.

Building new transmission lines is extremely costly, takes 10 to 20 years and requires navigating myriad impacts to landowners, Indigenous sites and wildlife areas.

The Oregon Electric Transmission Authority would establish an independent public corporation.

The authority would identify and establish transmission corridors and finance, develop, construct and upgrade transmission lines across Oregon .

Washington state also is working on setting up a similar transmission authority.

Oregon requires the state’s two major electric companies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

PGE says it is already using grid enhancing technologies to minimize environmental and property impacts.

Legislators have introduced bills to speed transmission permitting at state and federal levels.

PGE's Boardman-to- Idaho line, Idaho Power , said it too hoped for transmission permitting reform.