AUGUSTA — Central Maine Power, a subsidiary of Iberdrola USA, continues to reach new milestones on the Maine Power Reliability Program, a $1.4 billion upgrade of the company’s bulk electric transmission system. Over the past several weeks, CMP has energized more than 40 miles of new 345-kilovolt transmission lines between Public Service of New Hampshire’s Eliot Substation and CMP’s South Gorham Substation.

Construction began on the 345kV transmission lines in 2013. The lines use wooden H-frame structures through 10 communities from Gorham to Eliot. 

“Putting these lines into service represents two more key steps we are taking to meet the needs of our customers,” said CMP President and CEO Sara J. Burns. “When complete, the MPRP will help to ensure the reliability of Maine’s bulk power grid well into the future. This new infrastructure will also help to facilitate the integration of new generation resources, including renewable power being developed in northern and western Maine, into the grid.” 

The MPRP is nearly 95 percent complete. Construction started in 2010 and is scheduled to be finished in 2015. To date, CMP has energized three out of four new substation autotransformers and crews have installed over 5,000 new transmission structures.

The MPRP will ensure the long-term reliability of CMP’s bulk power system, according to the company. The project includes the construction of four new 345kV substations, one new 115kV substation, and related facilities linked by approximately 440 miles of new transmission lines. The new facilities will reinforce the backbone of the company’s 40-year-old bulk power system and improve reliability. The MPRP is the largest construction project ever undertaken in Maine. More than 2,700 people have been employed directly in the construction, and a 2009 economic impact study projected that the construction spending would generate as many as 900 more jobs through indirect and induced employment.