Energizing Nevada

Sunday, Feb. 20, 2011 | 2:01 a.m.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Energy Secretary Steven Chu last week announced that the federal government would provide a $343 million loan guarantee for the construction of a major electrical transmission line in Nevada.

The line, which will run from Apex to Ely, is a major step forward for the state. Nevada has never had a connection between the electrical grids in the northern and southern parts of the state, and that has cost Nevadans money and hampered development of renewable energy sources.

The ON Line transmission project, which is being built by NV Energy and LS Power, should be operational by 2013. Renewable energy companies have been waiting for a transmission line like this because it will give them a conduit for their power. The line will open up markets in other states, notably Southern California and Arizona.

“This transmission line is a major step toward unlocking Nevada’s vast clean energy potential and creating thousands of jobs that will stay in Nevada and cannot be shipped overseas,” Reid said. “This loan guarantee is exactly the kind of public-private partnership that Nevada and the nation need to help us lead the world in clean energy jobs.”

The new line will give the grid more stability, allowing the power company to move energy from one part of the state to the other and giving Nevada access to new sources of energy. That should result in lower rates. Reid said the line would quickly make Nevada energy independent.

This is the first transmission project selected for an Energy Department loan guarantee, and Chu said transmission projects such as this are vital for the nation’s energy future, giving more stability to the power grid and increasing its efficiency.

The loan guarantee was made under the Recovery Act, which is clearly fulfilling its mission in this case. In the short term, the line will bring 400 construction jobs, and extra economic activity will be created by the work. Over the long term, the line is expected to provide plenty of benefits as power plants are built and staffed.

That should be a good deal for everyone, and Reid and the Obama administration should be applauded for their efforts. Unfortunately, House Republicans are trying to cut the program.

In a letter to her colleagues, Democrat Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, chairwoman of the Senate’s subcommittee on water and energy appropriations, said that since 2005, the Energy Department has made commitments to 23 clean energy projects in 19 states, creating or saving 58,000 jobs. “For every dollar appropriated, the loans are driving $13 of private-sector investment,” Feinstein wrote. That’s an incredible investment.

She noted that cutting the program would affect several projects that have either received Energy Department loan guarantees or are in the process of securing the commitments. The bottom line is that this program has helped spur the economy, create jobs and provide needed energy. Congress should be encouraging such endeavors — not cutting them.