Supersized power hub in southeastern N.M. to link 3 major U.S. grids

Phil Harris is masterminding an electricity superhighway — a facility near Clovis that will connect the nation's three main power grids for the first time. The Tres Amigas Superstation will link the Western Interconnection, Eastern Interconnection and Texas Interconnection at a point in southeastern New Mexico. It also will provide the transmission capacity that power managers say is needed to handle the renewable energy expected from new solar and wind sources. The hub will allow energy to flow between the grids via superconductor cables in underground pipelines and AC/DC converters. The multifacility project will be built on 22.5 square miles of land leased from the New Mexico State Land Office. The superstation will be built in 500-megawatt units. Harris hopes to commence construction on the first one next year. The projected cost for the first phase is about $600 million. Eventually, Tres Amigas will have the capacity to move as much as 30 gigawatts of power between the three grids...more