Basin Electric participates in public scoping meetings in Crosby and Tioga

Bobby Nasset, supervisor of Civil Engineering addresses attendees at the public scoping meeting in Crosby, ND.

Basin Electric participated in two public scoping meetings in October in Crosby, North Dakota and Tioga, North Dakota. The meetings, hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Grid Deployment Office, are part of a federal permitting process for Basin Electric’s proposed project that would include two transmission lines from substations in Williams County to the Canadian border traversing parts of Divide County.

The Tande-to-Saskatchewan and Wheelock-to-Saskatchewan 230-kV transmission line project was deemed necessary to resolve deficiencies in transmission capability by the Southwest Power Pool (SPP). Basin Electric is the designated transmission owner for the upgrade in the United States, and SaskPower will complete the circuit within Canada.

Philip Westby, manager of Transmission Services at Basin Electric, said the circuits will strengthen reliability in the local and regional electric system and increase efficiency in the electric market.

The scoping meetings were hosted by the Grid Deployment Office as part of their consideration of a Presidential Permit application submitted by Basin Electric for the project. A presidential permit is required for the construction of an electric transmission facility crossing one of the country’s international borders. The DOE opened a public comment period to determine the issues to be addressed in its environmental review of the project. The review process can take one to two years to complete.

The first meeting was held at the Tioga Community Center in Tioga on October 20, 2024 - approximately 20 individuals were in attendance. The second meeting was held at the Divide County Courthouse in Crosby on October 29, 2024 - approximately 45 individuals were in attendance. Interested parties were able to submit official comments to the DOE until November 29.

Erin Laverdure, Basin Electric project coordination representative, said the meetings provided opportunities for project team members to hear from landowners along the preferred routes. “They’re members of their local electric cooperatives that are ultimately served by Basin Electric. They have a voice. Landowner feedback is taken into consideration as we develop the project,” she said.