The major electrical transmission line we reported last week that is eligible for more than $300 million in federal funding and will stretch 400 miles West to East across Oklahoma is something of a resurrection of a failed line proposed 6 years ago.
The Cimarron Link, one of four major lines to get $1.5 billion total in U.S. Energy Department funding, might very well be the former Wind Catcher line proposed in 2017 by Invenergy, a Chicago based company.
Here is what Invenergy declared at the time: “The wind facility is part of the $4.5 billion Wind Catcher Energy Connection that also includes an approximately 350-mile dedicated, extra-high voltage power line. American Electric Power (AEP)utility subsidiaries Public Service Co. of Oklahoma (PSO) and SouthwesternElectric Power Co. (SWEPCO) are asking utility regulators in in Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma to approve plans to purchase the wind farm from Invenergy uponcompletion of construction and to build the power line to serve PSOand SWEPCO’s more than 1.1 million customers.”
Wind Catcher was designed to transport electricity from what Invenergy labeled at the time as the nation’s largest proposed wind farm in the Panhandles of Oklahoma and Texas. It was canceled when Texas regulators voted against the project. Wind Catcher’s approval by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission never came because Invenergy pulled the plug before regulators took a vote and after the rejection by Texas.
At the time, Wind Catcher won approval from regulators in Arkansas and Louisiana where customers would receive some of its electrical power carried across a large transmission line.
Now it appears the project is rising from the grave, thanks to the government giving its support in the form of hundreds of millions of dollars. But it has a new name—Cimarron Link.
“Cimarron Link is an electric transmission project that will unlock access to one of the lowest cost, steadiest-producing natural energy resources available anywhere in America—the inexhaustible wind energy of the Oklahoma Panhandle,” according to Cimarron Link’s website.
“Cimarron Link will unlock access to the low-cost, domestically produced energy resources in the Oklahoma Panhandle, bolstering energy security for Oklahoman families and businesses and reducing our reliance on foreign energy,” stated the website.
The Cimarron Link transmission line will connect a western endpoint in the Oklahoma Panhandle and an eastern endpoint near Jenks, Oklahoma. Invenergy indicated on the website that it identified a project study area and “intend to evaluate potential transmission lilne planning issues, opportunities and constraints.”
The company indicated it already has started reaching out to landowners and other stakeholders “which will allow for the additional refinement of the project.”
Invenergy promises thousands of jobs during construction of the project “representing hundreds of millions of dollars in labor income.”
It also claims there will be hundreds of millions of dollars in new local tax revenue, “Including tens of millions of dollars during construction and additional hundreds of millions over the operating life of the projects in ad valorem taxes paid to benefit Oklahoma schools and local county services.”
The website also vowed there will be tens of millions of dollars in landowner easement payments “over the development, construction and operational phases of the project.”
The Biden-Harris administration in recent months has promoted the development of electrical transmission lines to strengthen power grids, including the Southwest Power Pool.
The Cimarron Link advertises it will also bolster energy security.
“Cimarron Link will not only strengthen the reliability of energy in our region but will also reduce our dependence on foreign energy sources. Diverse energy solutions are essential to the energy security of our country and continued investment in energy infrastructure projects like Cimarron Link is vital to building the stability of the American power grid.”
To entice support, Invenergy thourgh Cimarron Link is also offering grants to organizations and groups. The one-time grants will be up to $500 and be given on a first-come, first-served basis to a select number of organizations.