Company: POR
Filing Date: 2025-02-14
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0000784977-25-000012
Chunk: 99

Company: PORTLAND GENERAL ELECTRIC CO /OR/
Filing Date: 2025-02-14
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 7
Chunk 99
---
 reliability, enable decarbonization goals, and address growing customer demand.

On May 28, 2024, PGE signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding in the development of the North Plains Connector, an approximately 415-mile, high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) transmission line to be constructed with endpoints near Bismarck, North Dakota and Colstrip, Montana. The parties have entered negotiations with the U.S. DOE to finalize the project objectives, terms, and conditions, including the Company’s participation, which is expected to involve a 20% ownership share of the approximately $3.2 billion total investment of the project. On August 6, 2024, the project was awarded a $700 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships program to further support its development and would reduce the overall total investment of the project.

The North Plains Connector would be the nation’s first HVDC transmission connection among three regional U.S. electric energy markets, providing additional flexibility and the sharing of resources across multiple time zones. PGE's resource planning process indicates the need for transmission to provide additional transfer capacity, access to diverse energy resources, access to enhanced wholesale markets, and to ease congestion on the existing western transmission system. PGE continues to explore the North Plains Connector as a resource to meet those load-service needs.

The United States Department of Energy (U.S. DOE) selected the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs (CTWS), with PGE as a subrecipient under the grant, for a $250 million grant to upgrade the existing 230 kV Bethel-Round Butte Transmission line to 500 kV. The project will accelerate the development of transmission capacity, enabling new carbon-free generation in Central and Eastern Oregon to reach customer demand loads in Western Oregon. The added capacity and associated upgrades will also increase resiliency of the transmission system as well as resiliency of the CTWS communities by increasing resources available to CTWS to support adaptation and response strategies. See “Federal Grants” in this Overview for further discussion.

Building a resilient grid—To serve communities with clean energy, PGE’s grid of the future will need to be smart and adaptive. Highlights of PGE’s key investments and plans for building a resilient grid include:

45

•Wildfire Mitigation—PGE has a Wildfire Mitigation Program under which an annual Wildfire Mitigation Plan (WMP) is developed and submitted to the OPUC, as required by State law,