Power-hungry NY

Newsday

03-04-2004

The failure of a private energy company to win financial backing for a new transmission line to bring essential power from upstate to New York City casts new doubt on the ability of the marketplace to meet the state's electricity-transmission needs. If the project can't be resurrected, the state must be ready to provide a solution.

Conjunction LLC had sought to finance the bulk of the cost of the $700-million project by auctioning off use of the proposed line to electricity suppliers and other companies. But the auction was canceled after potential bidders pulled out last week, wary of the risks of investing in energy-related projects - even despite a well-publicized requirement that the city add to its available power supplies.

Another ominous note: The project's design was as uncontroversial as a major transmission line's is ever likely to be. The cables would be buried underground, not strung on towers, and they would be routed largely along existing highway and railroad rights-of-way.

The developer hasn't given up: Conjunction says it will seek to restructure the financing in some way. But Albany needs to be thinking ahead. If restructuring doesn't work, the state must take action to eliminate bottlenecks that keep power from existing upstate plants from reaching the city - or power from new ones that could be built more easily upstate.

Two potential solutions: The state might order local public utilities to build transmission lines through their service territories. Or, more expeditiously, the New York Power Authority could do the job.