An updated report by the Edison Electric Institute (EEI) finds that investor-owned electric utilities are continuing to make significant investments to build needed and beneficial transmission infrastructure and to enhance the nation’s electric power grid to meet 21st-century energy needs. The report, Transmission Projects: At A Glance, finds that EEI members’ total transmission investment in 2013 reached $16.9 billion.
“The high level of investment in our nation’s transmission infra-structure improves reliability and benefits customers by enabling utilities to deploy new technologies, such as advanced monitoring systems, that help to make the grid more flexible and more resilient,” said EEI Vice President of Energy Delivery Jim Fama. “These investments also relieve transmission congestion, facilitate wholesale market competition, and support a diverse and changing generation portfolio that includes more renewable resources, such as wind and solar power.”