US regulators issue permit for 330-mile Canadian hydropower transmission line to NYC

Federal regulators have given final approval for construction of a 330-mile electric transmission line to bring lower-cost Canadian hydroelectric power to New York City.

The Department of Energy decision dated Wednesday clears the way for the 1,000-megawatt Champlain Hudson Power Express line after some final concerns are addressed by Albany-based Transmission Developers.

The line is to run under the length of Lake Champlain, through parts of the Hudson, Harlem and East rivers and beneath railroad rights of way en route from Quebec to Con Edison in Queens.

Construction is expected to begin next year and take about four years, creating about 300 jobs and costing about $2 billion.

The developers of the Champlain Hudson Power Express have also proposed the New England Clean Power Link, a 150-mile, 1,000-megawatt cable under Lake Champlain from Canada to Vermont.