Construction starts on Nucla-Sunshine transmission project

Construction began June 1 on Tri-State’s latest transmission project, the 115-kilovolt Nucla-Sunshine line in southwestern Colorado. The new 51-mile line is scheduled to be completed and energized in 2012.

The transmission line is needed to replace an aging 69-kV line between Nucla and Telluride that is owned by Tri-State member cooperative San Miguel Power Association (SMPA). The line, originally constructed in 1948, is at the end of its useful life, is vulnerable to lightning strikes and is costly to maintain. Additionally, this line cannot support the Telluride area’s electric load during peak energy usage times if the primary source of power serving the Telluride area from Durango is unavailable.

Tri-State will own and operate the new 115-kV line that will replace the 69-kV line. The old line will be removed and the new line will be constructed, following some of the original alignment.

• Read more about the project