The US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has approved routes for two sections of the 1.5GW Gateway West transmission project in south-west Idaho.
The latest authorisation gives Rocky Mountain Power and Idaho Power the go-ahead to build and operate segments eight and nine of the 10-part transmission line on 2910 hectares of public land.
The approval follows previously authorised segments of the line in southern Wyoming and eastern Idaho, BLM said.
Gateway West aims to improve energy infrastructure and supply in the Pacific Northwest and Intermountain West regions of the US.
In February, a 225km stretch of the Gateway West line was included in Rocky Mountain Power’s deal to source power from four PacifiCorp wind farms totalling 1.3GW in Wyoming.
Gateway West was jointly proposed by Rocky Mountain Power and Idaho Power to be built in 10 segments starting at the Windstar substation near Glenrock, Wyoming, and terminating at the Hemingway substation near Boise in Idaho.
Image: sxc
Feds clear Idaho Gateway link
By EBS