Montana lands $700 million for major transmission project

Montana will receive $700 million to advance the nation's first transmission project bridging the eastern and western grids, a step described as critical to U.S. energy reliability.

The U.S. Department of Energy grant, announced Tuesday by Gov. Greg Gianforte in a press release, will advance the North Plains Connector, a 415-mile, high voltage, direct-current line between Montana's Colstrip substation and Center, North Dakota. The 525-kilovolt line could be the first high-voltage line in the country bridging the eastern and western energy grids, allowing power to move from Portland to Minnesot...