On March 2, 2010, ITC Great Plains, LLC applied to the Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC) for a siting permit to construct Phase II of the KETA high-voltage electric transmission line project (also known as the Spearville-Knoll-Axtell line). Subject to KCC analysis and approval, Phase II of the 345,000 volt (345kV) line will run approximately 85 miles through north-central Kansas from the Post Rock (originally Knoll) substation near Hays to the Kansas-Nebraska border.
ITC has coordinated with the Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD) on a proposed border crossing point located in Smith County, about 3.5 miles east of Kansas Highway 8 and Nebraska Highway 10. NPPD will build the approximately 50-mile segment of the line from the Kansas-Nebraska border to Axtell, Neb. The entire line will run approximately 225 miles from Spearville, Kan., to Axtell, Neb. The KCC approved the Phase I route, from Spearville to Hays, in July 2009.
''The Spearville-Knoll-Axtell transmission line is a critical infrastructure project for ITC Great Plains, the state of Kansas and the region,'' said Carl Huslig, president of ITC Great Plains. ''This project will provide access to more reliable, efficient and affordable electricity, allowing Kansas to deliver its abundant natural resource, wind energy, across the region, and regain its position as a net exporter of energy.''
The application for the Phase II siting permit is the result of a process that began in 2009 when ITC Great Plains developed three potential routes through Ellis, Rooks, Osborne, Smith and Phillips counties. ITC invited landowners with properties on or near the proposed routes to open house events in Plainville on November 30 and Smith Center on December 1. More than 400 landowners, residents and other interested parties attended the events and provided input regarding the routes. Their comments were taken into consideration during development of the proposed final route, which attempts to minimize impacts to residents, their land and the natural environment while providing a technically viable and cost-effective transmission line.
ITC anticipates the KCC will conduct a public hearing on the siting application in approximately 60 days, followed by an order approving a specific route on or about June 30, 2010. ITC then would begin negotiations with landowners to purchase right-of-way easements. Phase II construction is projected to begin by late 2011. Phase II of the KETA Project is expected to be built primarily with single tubular steel poles which will minimize the impact on agricultural land use.
Phase II timeline
Phase II route map - entire line
Phase II detailed route maps:
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