Project Background
Responding to the needs of the changing energy landscape, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), the grid planning organization that includes Michigan, has devoted several years of an intensive, collaborative effort to develop a Long-Range Transmission Plan (LRTP) to build needed high-voltage transmission infrastructure across the region. ITC was actively involved with this process and advocated for the LRTP projects.
Michigan Projects – Tranche 1
With an estimated investment of $850 million, these Michigan projects are strategically engineered to improve grid reliability and resiliency, support the state’s economic development efforts and enable the safe and reliable movement of power to our communities.
(see Project Profiles to the right for additional details)
Helix-Hiple
Approximately 55 miles of new 345 kilovolts (kV) lines will be constructed from northern Indiana to a new ITC substation, named Helix located southwest of Lansing. This will be the first new interstate connection to Michigan’s transmission system in nearly 50 years.
Nelson Road-Oneida
ITC will build approximately 40 miles of new 345kV transmission lines from the Oneida substation in Oneida Township to the Nelson Road substation in New Haven Township.
ABOUT ITC
ITC, through its subsidiaries ITCTransmission and Michigan Electric Transmission Company, LLC (METC), owns and maintains more than 9,100 circuit miles of high-voltage electric lines and 397 transmission substations throughout Michigan’s Lower Peninsula.
ABOUT MISO
As an independent, non-profit Regional Transmission Organization (RTO), the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) acts as an “air traffic controller” for the regional grid with the mission of working collaboratively with electricity stakeholders across 15 US states and Manitoba. Forty-five million people depend on MISO to generate and transmit the right amount of electricity every minute of every day – reliably, dependably and cost-effectively.
ABOUT LRTP
In 2022, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) initiated a project known as Long-Range Transmission Planning (LRTP). As an independent, non-profit Regional Transmission Organization (RTO), MISO acts as an “air traffic controller” for the regional grid.
MISO’s LRTP is a group of four planned phases, or tranches, with Tranche 1 representing a $10.3 billion investment of 18 transmission projects in MISO’s Midwest Subregion and includes projects in Michigan. Overall, the LRTP projects are the largest portfolio of long-range transmission projects in RTO history, providing a roadmap for future transmission investment across the MISO footprint.
FAQs
Project Schedule
| Open Houses/Public Meetings | Held October 2023. See “Additional Information” to the right for more project information. |
| Helix Substation | Construction is scheduled to begin Q4 2025 and be completed Q3 2026. |
| Nelson Road-Oneida transmission lines | Transmission line construction is scheduled to begin Q1 2028 and be completed Q4 2028 |
| Helix-Hiple transmission lines | Transmission line construction is scheduled to begin Q1 2029 and be completed Q3 2030. |