SAN LUIS VALLEY —Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association along with its local member cooperatives San Luis Valley REC and San Isabel Electric Association will host a series of open houses this month to provide information about the transmission line project proposed between electrical substations near Walsenburg and Mosca.

Tri-State proposes a 230-kilovolt transmission line between the Walsenburg Substation and the San Luis Valley Substation to improve system reliability and help prevent voltage collapse (or power outages) under peak loads. The project will also provide transmission capacity for renewable energy development in the Valley.

San Luis Valley’s existing electrical system has reached its limit due to continued residential growth and irrigation demand, Tri-State spokespersons explained. Electrical service to homes, farms and businesses could be lost if the existing lines are overloaded, they added.

The additional capacity of a new 230-kilovolt line would reinforce the power delivery system in the San Luis Valley by preventing voltage collapse and providing redundant service. It would also allow for the development and export of new generation resources.

Attendees of the October public sessions will learn about the interactive process that Tri-State will facilitate in siting the line and how it will work with landowners and counties in selecting a route. There will also be informational exhibits on line construction, environmental studies, potential corridors and the need for the line to prevent power outages in the area.

Officials from Xcel Energy also will be on hand to discuss its participation in the project. Because of this transmission line’s potential for exporting solar resources, Xcel Energy has expressed interest in partnering with Tri-State in this project.

While this will not be an official scoping session that is required by the Rural Utilities Service as part of the federally-required environmental assessment, the open houses will provide an opportunity for individuals to learn more about the need for the power line and the process that the utilities follow to ensure public involvement. The scoping meetings will likely be scheduled in early 2009.

For additional information, contact Karli Nelson at knelson@tristategt.org or 303-254-3133.

An October 21 meeting is scheduled in Walsenburg. In addition, meetings are scheduled in the San Luis Valley:

• Wed., Oct. 22 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Alamosa Recreation Center, 222 Old Sanford Road, Alamosa.

• Wed., Oct. 22 from 4-7 p.m. at the Fort Garland/Blanca Community Center.

Action 22, a 22-county coalition of Southern Colorado cities, communities, counties, associations, individuals, businesses and other organizations, passed a resolution this summer in support of the proposed San Luis Valley Electric System Improvement Project.

The group stated: “Rural economic development in southern Colorado relies on access to a dependable supply of electricity, and the proposed SLV Project will ensure that utilities in southern Colorado can serve their consumers with a reliable, affordable and adequate supply of electric power.”

Tri-State is a wholesale electric power supplier owned by the 44 electric cooperatives that it serves. Tri-State generates and transports electricity to its member systems throughout a 250,000- square-mile service territory across Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico and Wyoming.