Final route for Brookings County-Hampton 345 kV transmission line project

The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (MN PUC) granted a Route Permit for the Brookings County-Hampton 345 kilovolt (kV) transmission line project on July 15, 2010. The MN PUC approved approximately 175 miles of the 240-mile route for the sections between the Brookings County, South Dakota substation and the new Cedar Mountain substation in Renville County and between the new Helena and Hampton substations.

On February 3, 2011, the MN PUC approved the Minnesota River crossing at Belle Plaine. This approval finalized the last segment of the project route between the Cedar Mountain substation (Renville County) and the Helena substation (Scott County).
 
The route is a combination of route segments proposed by the utilities when the application was filed in December 2008 as well as additional segments proposed during the public review process. Construction is expected to begin in late 2012 and be complete by 2015. CapX2020 will begin contacting landowners in mid-2011 to negotiate easements.
 
Detailed aerial photo route maps: Click within a numbered tile below to download a detailed map as a PDF. Click here for a high resolution overview map of the project (PDF). Click in an area outside the numbered tiles to see an enlarged overview map.