The proposed Tri-State EMC 161-kilovolt substation may or may not affect power rates.
Tri-State General Manager Stacy Chastain said, “We won’t know for certain (if rates will be affected). I would anticipate that our rate increases would be similar to what we’ve experienced for the last 10 years. You know, I don’t see a 10% increase or anything like that.
“The substation will be financed with long term, very low interest rates made available to utilities through RUS, which stands for Rural Utilities Service, which is through the USDA.”
However, the transmission line, on Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA) part, will not affect Tri-State EMC power rates, says TDS representative Keith Elder, but it will restrict property owners’ rights.
Elder said the project will cost around $1 million per mile because the improvements are built into their capital plan. The line is estimated to be four to five miles long.
“We’re constantly building transmission lines to adjust to the growth of the valley as our customers built their stations, so we have a capital plan every year that’s built into our budget,” He said.
In addition, the 161-kilovolt station is being constructed with population growth in mind. Elder said Tri-State EMC has been evaluating potential growth as a means to determine the size and location of the station.
He added that they plan to build off of Scenic Drive in Blue Ridge, right behind Comfort Inn.
The authority will need to acquire right-of-ways for some 141 parcels of land. Since it is a line, it will trek above property owners’ land; therefore, restricting certain structures from being built in the future.
In constructing the line and station, TVA has taken into account social, environmental and engineering factors.
“We’re federal, so we’re bound by the NEPA Act, and that requires us to go through, take a look at all the affects to the human environment,” Elder said. “So we will make sure we minimize the impact, so we’ll look at cultural resources, threatened and endangered species, wetlands, streams, rivers, and try to balance all of that with the impacts of people.”
The 161-kilovolt substation is needed as Blue Ridge’s 69-kilovolt station has reached capacity, and Epworth’s is near capacity. Elder said this is a reason for reoccurring power outages across the county.
This project is needed to alleviate these problems, and to accommodate future growth. The “161 (kilovolt) system is a good, reliable system,” according to experts.
The public is encouraged to reach out to TVA and express thoughts and opinions over the project. The public comment period will end March 2.
A tentative schedule is as follows:
•Announcement of preferred route by spring of 2020;
•Begin surveying by fall of 2020;
•Begin easement purchases throughout the summer and fall of 2021;
•Begin construction in the winter of 2021 and 2022; and,
•Have the line in service by spring of 2022.