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It is an electric transmission line and substation that will create a redundant and higher capacity electrical connection for Hancock County. It includes a proposed 14-mile, 115,000 volt transmission line from Ellsworth to Trenton and a substation in the southern portion of Trenton. This project will bring a significant improvement to electric reliability and capacity to this region. The line will be co-located with existing lines approximately 70% of its distance. Existing lines will continue to operate.
The current infrastructure was put in place in the early- to mid-fifties, and has been maintained according to routine maintenance protocols. However, at the present time, the system is at capacity, and is strained during peak conditions. System studies have revealed that the current infrastructure cannot support forecasted demand for electricity in Hancock County. This project will establish redundant infrastructure to allow us to meet customers' needs. Bangor Hydro has the obligation to serve its customers in all parts of its service territory with safe, reliable electric delivery service. This is an important investment for our customers in Hancock County. BHE identified the need in its 2004 system study, and began developing a solution at that time. All permits and land rights were received in mid 2007, and construction began in the fall of 2007. We plan to have the new line and substation on line by the end of 2008.
We sought to understand back in 2005 and throughout the project development, the problem and the criteria by which the various alternatives could be compared. Technically, the project needed to result in an electric delivery service that can meet the capacity, reliability and quality that customers require. Our criteria included the following:
We considered a host of solutions, ranging from doing nothing, to upgrading existing lines, to building new lines at various voltages, to generation and/or conservation. We determined through our analysis that a new 115kV line and substation is the most effective solution to provide long-term, reliable electric delivery service to all of Hancock County.
Depending on the final design and the complexity of the permitting process, the project is expected to cost between $21-24 million. That is roughly $1.20/month increase in an average residential customer’s bill (based on 500 kWh consumption).
This project will benefit our customers in southern Hancock County who rely on dependable electric service for their homes and businesses. Our development process was carefully designed to minimize undesirable impacts on people and the communities and environment they live in. Landowner preferences, environmental impacts and community input were heavily weighed in the siting process. Bangor Hydro places private landowners high on the list of project stakeholders and engaged people face to face to understand their position or interest in conveying land rights for this purpose. Bangor Hydro fairly reimbursed landowners for their property and sought landowner permission prior to entry onto private property. While the permitting process ensures compliance, environmental considerations were deeply embedded into our process well before the permitting stage. One of the first steps in a project was to gather information from the State of Maine’s GIS database resources including those maintained by Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, Maine Geographic Information Services, and Maine Historic Preservation Council. We then took this into consideration when talking to landowners. Field work supplemented our environmental assessment, to identify and protect vernal pools, eagle nesting sites, and rare, threatened or endangered plant or animal species. We supplemented the database scan and field work with face-to-face dialogue with the various agencies and sporting groups. Finally, construction practices and schedules were adapted to ensure the least amount of impact to these special resources that define our Maine. Bangor Hydro makes every effort to avoid or minimize impacts on environmentally or culturally sensitive resources.
As of this writing (May 2008), we have completed 75% of the line construction and expect substation construction to begin this month. Land rights and permits were received in 2007, and tree clearing and line construction began in the fall of 2007. For future updates, please contact us:
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