– Maine Public Service Co and Central Maine Power Co plan to invest up to $500 million to build a 345-kilovolt power transmission line from central to northern Maine, the companies said in a release Tuesday.
The 200-mile line will connect northern Maine to the New England electric grid in part to support the development of proposed wind generation projects in Aroostook County.
Maine Public Service, a subsidiary of Maine & Maritimes Corp of Presque Isle, Maine, serving about 36,000 customers in northern Maine, is connected to the power grid in New Brunswick, Canada.
Central Maine Power Co is a subsidiary of Energy East Corp of Portland, Maine.
The companies expect the power line to enable the development of about 800 megawatts of wind generation estimated at $1.6 billion.
The companies plan to file the project this week with the Maine Public Utilities Commission.
Energy East owns and operates about 400 MW of generating capacity in New York and transmits and distributes natural gas and electricity to about 3 million customers in upstate New York and New England.
