By Mike Armstrong
Writer, Carbon County Comet
On June 20, Carbon County and the city of Rawlins were on the radar of the national media, energy analysts and companies involved in the energy sector.
U.S. Cabinet members: Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm gathered with Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon and other national, regional and local officials to witness a groundbreaking ceremony of the TransWest Express (TWE) Transmission Project.
This project is important to the United States because it is a high-voltage interregional transmission system which will add capacity and reliably deliver renewable energy across the Western U.S. power grid.
The groundbreaking ceremony took place on the Overland Trail Ranch, a working cattle ranch south of Rawlins, Wyoming, where the TWE Project’s northern HVDC (high-voltage direct current) terminal is sited.
After the ceremonial groundbreaking had concluded, there was a community reception held at the historic train depot in downtown Rawlins.
The 732-mile TWE Project will provide important new bulk transmission capacity to benefit the entire West. The TWE Project will interconnect with the PacifiCorp system in Wyoming, with the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power and Intermountain Power systems in Utah, with the NV Energy system in Nevada, and with the California Independent System Operator.
At the ceremony, there are symbols to honor the states involved in this project. At the TWE Project groundbreaking, flags flying at the ceremony from Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Nevada and California. As a tribute to Wyoming and Western history, the shovels used at the groundbreaking were made by AMES, an American company founded in 1774. The Ames family helped finance the construction of the Union Pacific Railroad, which lies in the same linear corridor as the TWE Project in Wyoming and Wyoming’s famous Ames Monument. AMES shovels were used to build the Union Pacific Railroad; they were used to build the Interstate Highway System, also adjoining the TWE Project; and today, they were used to start construction on the TWE Project. Using the shovels honored those visionaries and entrepreneurs who looked to the future and realized what America can achieve that benefits its citizens.
The TWE Project is important to Carbon County, Wyoming, the nation and at the Rawlins train depot, the attendees were in celebration mode. Different media from the region recorded different officials talking with community leaders. Although the Cabinet Secretaries did not linger much after the ceremony, Governor Gordon stayed at the reception for a while, meeting with Carbon County residents and other attendees.
The groundbreaking ceremony and reception were a success which certainly pleased the project’s owners.
“The TWE Project’s successful development represents recognition by stakeholders of all kinds and at all levels that collaborating to build a stronger power grid is vital to building a stronger nation,” said Bill Miller, president and CEO of TransWest Express LLC (TransWest). “We deeply appreciate the support we’ve received from so many people along the way. We are thankful for everyone who celebrated this milestone with us today. Now, we look forward and are focused on assuring the TWE Project’s successful construction.”
Before the reception was over, a news release came out from the two visiting Cabinet Secretaries over the national wire.
“Secretary Haaland said the TWE Project “will accelerate our nation’s transition to a clean energy economy by unlocking renewable resources, creating jobs, lowering costs, and boosting local economies.”
Added Secretary Granholm: “The TransWest Express Project will play a major role in our nation’s energy security, ensuring that home-grown clean energy can form the backbone of our electric grid as we rebuild a stronger, more resilient transmission system.”\
Governor Gordon commented, “The groundbreaking event for the TransWest Express demonstrates yet another example of how Wyoming is continuing its energy leadership. Today we celebrate the contribution our wind resources can make, and we are glad to be able to provide energy to primarily California and Nevada consumers, who want what Wyoming has to offer.” Governor Gordon continued, “Once completed, Wyoming will be home to the largest wind farm in the United States. This will be one more source of energy to complement our all-of-the-above energy approach, from renewables to fossil fuels to nuclear. There is room in Wyoming for all.”
TransWest’s primary construction partners are Siemens Energy Inc.for the HVDC terminal technology and Barnard Wilson Joint Venture for the transmission line and AC substations. TransWest also is partnering with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the International Union of Operating Engineers.
In April, the Bureau of Land Management, part of the U.S. Department of the Interior, issued its Notice to Proceed for the TWE Project, which was the final federal authorization needed to start construction. Underscoring the national significance of the TWE Project, federal entities identified in 2011 as a critical transmission infrastructure to complete.
The TWE Project will be the Western power grid’s largest transmission addition in decades. It will connect three planning regions in the West while adding 3,000 MW (megawatt) of high-voltage capacity from Wyoming to Utah and 1,500 MW of high-voltage capacity from Utah to the Desert Southwest (Nevada, California, Arizona). The project also will provide the West with new access to wind-generated electricity from Carbon County, which many in the energy industry consider the home of America’s best onshore wind resources. The TWE Project is expected to be energized in 2027.
TransWest is an affiliate of The Anschutz Corporation, a privately held company that owns and operates a diverse portfolio of investments, including those in the natural resources industries.
Elected officials and town councils throughout Carbon County have known about what TransWest has been planning for several years due to the tireless efforts of Kara Choquette, Director of Communications and Government Relations for TransWest. Choquette kept Carbon County community leaders abreast of bills that were endangering wind companies’ ability to come to the state to harness the wind. Few who have witnessed her speak know she is passionate about TransWest and what it can do for Carbon County and the state.
“We’re all so honored by how many people came to celebrate the TWE Project with us,” Choquette said. “We’re incredibly thankful to everyone who helped get the project to this milestone, and I feel blessed that we got such a perfectly sunny and windy day,” Choquette continued. “Celebrating the start of summer and the start of the TWE Project’s construction phase after over 15 years in the development phase was joyful and exciting beyond measure.
