Transmission lines are the interstate highways of the electrical grid. They move large amounts of electricity across long distances, from the places it is generated to the communities that use it. Distribution lines are smaller power lines that deliver electricity to homes and businesses.

Idaho Power has worked closely with the public, local governments, tribes and regulators across eastern Oregon to develop a path for the line that maximizes benefits to the region and minimizes burdens. Idaho Power has changed B2H’s route in response to community input. We’ll continue working with stakeholders throughout the permitting and construction phases to minimize the line’s impacts.

See this report for more information on Idaho Power’s efforts to work with communities and stakeholders.

Yes. Benefits to cities and counties in eastern Oregon and southwestern Idaho include:

• Increased tax revenue. B2H’s owners will pay property taxes to each county the line crosses.
• Jobs and economic development opportunities. B2H will make room for local power lines to support new energy-intensive businesses like data centers and food processing plants. B2H will also bring construction jobs and spending to eastern Oregon and southwestern Idaho.

Watch this video for more details on B2H’s benefits to eastern Oregon: https://www.youtube.com/embed/eSHBKMmPAnM

Idaho Power evaluates alternatives to B2H every two years through its Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). The IRP projects demand for energy over the next 20 years and analyzes ways to meet that demand. Idaho Power then uses computer modeling of these alternatives and input from a wide variety of interested groups — including irrigators, environmental groups, major customers, regulators, government agencies and the public — to determine the lowest-cost, most reliable and most desirable mix of alternatives. This mix is reviewed by regulatory agencies in Idaho and Oregon.

Since 2006, Idaho Power and its stakeholders have identified B2H as an essential resource that minimizes cost and risk. Alternatives that were considered but determined to be more costly or infeasible include:

Wind or solar generation – Building enough wind or solar capacity to meet customer needs would cost much more than B2H. The generation of wind and solar energy also depends on weather and the time of day. Idaho Power will be able to import up to 500 megawatts — enough for about 170,000 houses — during peak summer demand.

Energy efficiency and demand response — Idaho Power operates extensive programs and will expand them as feasible. Expansion alone is unlikely to meet customers’ needs.

Additional natural gas-driven power plants — These plants would be more expensive for customers than B2H and produce more carbon emissions.

Battery storage — Using batteries to meet customer demand would be more expensive for customers than B2H.

B2H will connect two regions — the Pacific Northwest and Mountain West — that produce an abundance of clean energy but whose peak production and peak customer demand are mismatched.

In the Pacific Northwest, energy demand peaks in the winter as customers use electricity to heat their homes and businesses. But the availability of clean energy produced in this region, primarily from hydroelectric plants, peaks in the spring and summer when rivers and reservoirs are full of winter snowmelt.

In the Intermountain West, electricity demand peaks in the summer when irrigation pumps and air conditioners are working overtime. Production of this region’s abundant wind energy peaks in the winter.

By connecting both regions, B2H will give customers in the Pacific Northwest access to the Intermountain West’s wind energy to meet their winter needs. Customers in the Intermountain West will benefit from the Pacific Northwest’s hydropower in the summer.

With B2H, customers in both regions will enjoy reliable, affordable, clean energy and rely less on carbon-emitting power plants.

It’s too soon to tell how B2H would affect energy rates. Typically, the money utilities spend to build and operate transmission lines are included in future rates after the new lines go into service. Regulators review these investments to ensure they benefit customers.