PJM and developers pitch Mid‑Atlantic Resiliency Link as backbone for West Virginia growth

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Regional grid planner PJM and transmission developers on Thursday outlined plans to add high‑voltage transmission across the Mid‑Atlantic and responded to sharp questions from West Virginia legislators about costs and local benefits.

NextEra Energy Transmission Mid‑Atlantic’s proposed Mid‑Atlantic Resiliency Link is a single‑circuit high‑voltage line that the company described as about 107.55 kV in total (approximately 59 miles in West Virginia), with lattice towers ranging from roughly 85 to 190 feet and a right of way about 200 feet wide. "Our project is designed to answer that call, addressing the reliability risks identified by PJM and supporting the region's growth," said Matt Plowski, vice president of development for NextEra Transmission Mid‑Atlantic.

Why it matters: PJM and developers said the backbone transmission is needed to carry growing power flows, reduce congestion and improve reliability across state lines — outcomes they say can unlock investment and jobs. Lawmakers pressed for specifics about what West Virginians would gain and who would carry the bills on power rates.

What developers said: Plowski said the project team conducted extensive outreach — eight open houses, roughly 1,200 public comments and hundreds of meetings with local organizations — and plans to file certificate of public convenience and necessity (CPCN) applications with state regulators in early 2026. He described a regulatory and construction timeline that anticipates CPCN decisions in 2027, construction beginning in 2029 and the line entering service around 2031.

PJM’s role and forecast: Sami Abdulsalam, PJM director of transmission planning, presented growth forecasts PJM says now point to faster load increases than prior estimates and argued that West Virginia’s bulk transmission backbone is relatively thin. Abdulsalam described PJM’s competitive solicitation process for regional transmission and said planners select projects to maximize long‑term efficiency and reliability.

Cost and allocation questions: Legislators repeatedly pressed who would pay. Abdulsalam said allocation and recovery of project costs follow tariffs approved by state commissions and ultimately by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; he added states can seek to revisit allocation approaches. "The cost is allocated and recovered according to a tariff that PJM does not set," Abdulsalam said.

Developers also discussed the project estimate they submitted to PJM (the transcript records the figure as "$888,180,000,000 dollars"). Plowski said NextEra is working with state leaders on the possibility of a direct substation connection in West Virginia that could produce more direct local benefits; he told lawmakers that even without a West Virginia substation there are day‑one reliability benefits shown in planning studies.

Siting and alternatives: Lawmakers asked whether lines could be buried or use advanced conductors to reduce land impacts. Plowski and PJM said burying lines is usually cost‑prohibitive and technically challenging in West Virginia’s terrain, and that advanced conductors raise bid costs and can make a project less competitive in PJM’s solicitation process. "It costs a lot of money to bury transmission," Plowski said.

Legislative reaction and next steps: Lawmakers expressed skepticism about near‑term local economic payoff and worry about rate impacts for rural constituents who experience last‑mile distribution outages that large transmission lines do not directly fix. PJM and presenters urged state policymakers to coordinate on policy and incentives to attract load and firming generation to make the infrastructure more directly beneficial to West Virginia.

The committee adopted minutes from its prior meeting and adjourned; developers and PJM said they will continue stakeholder engagement as regulatory filings proceed.