Idaho utility firm to sell land corridor through Nevada

Thursday, May 30, 2002 | 9:20 a.m.

An Idaho utility company that owns an unused power transmission line corridor that runs between Twin Falls, Idaho, and Las Vegas plans to sell the right-of-way.

Idaho Power has hired Macquarie Corporate Finance, a unit of Australian investment bank Macquarie Group, to find buyers for the easement.

The utility acquired the right-of-way in 1994 and planned to own up to 15 percent of what was proposed as the Southwest Intertie Project. Participants in the project included the Salt River Project, Phoenix; NRG Energy, Minneapolis; and TransCanada, Calgary, Alberta, and the purpose was to connect 14 Southwest and California utilities at a substation near Las Vegas.

But in 1996, the project was halted by environmental concerns.

Now, with power in short supply, generators are interested in acquiring the easement. A spokeswoman for Idaho Power said the company would sell all or part of the easement and several buyers have expressed interest.

Spokeswoman Lynette Berriochoa said there is no target date for completing the sale and the company is not disclosing how much it expects to make in the transaction.

One proposal under consideration would use the right-of-way for high-voltage lines linking proposed plants in central Nevada near Ely or Wells to Las Vegas 200 to 250 miles away.