Western Wisconsin Transmission Connection
Project Overview
Xcel Energy has been approved by the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW) to build a new 345 kilovolt (kV) transmission line to serve communities throughout western Wisconsin. The new transmission line will help ensure regional electric reliability and increase access to new renewable energy being developed in the Upper Midwest.
The PSCW verbally approved the Western Wisconsin Transmission Connection (WWTC) project on October 30, 2025 and issued its final written order on December 10, 2025. The new 345 kilovolt (kV) transmission line to serve communities throughout western Wisconsin and will help ensure regional electric reliability and increase access to new renewable energy being developed in the Upper Midwest.
High-voltage transmission projects like Western Wisconsin Transmission Connection that link to local substations will help deliver energy to customers as they need it as plants retire and renewable energy from longer distances serve Wisconsin energy users. The project is part of a series of other projects that will work together to form the expanded regional grid upon which all of us depend. These projects, and others proposed in Minnesota and to the west, will help meet the region’s changing energy needs, including maintaining reliability as older plants are retired, resilience in the face of extreme weather, and delivering new renewable energy to customers throughout the Upper Midwest.
Project Resources
Project Information Sheet - January 2026 (PDF) (Opens in a new window) Transmission Connection Project - Status 2023 (PDF) (Opens in a new window) Electric and Magnetic Fields (EMF) (PDF) (Opens in a new window) Construction Process (PDF) (Opens in a new window) Overhead vs. Underground (PDF) (Opens in a new window) Birds and Powerlines (PDF) (Opens in a new window) Safety Around Powerlines (PDF) (Opens in a new window)Project Details
The project is part of a series of other projects that will work together to form the expanded regional grid upon which all of us depend. These projects, and others proposed in Minnesota and to the west, will help meet the region’s changing energy needs, including maintaining reliability as older plants are retired, resilience in the face of extreme weather, and delivering new renewable energy to customers throughout the Upper Midwest.
Project Route
The project includes route segments to connect the new transmission infrastructure to existing and new substations that will serve communities throughout western Wisconsin.
The PSCW approved route (referred in application as Route 2) will travel from the new Larkin Valley Substation (previously referred to as Tremval Substation Expansion), located approximately 0.5miles to the north of the existing Tremval Substation near Blair into Eau Claire County to connect with the new Elk Farm Substation, east and north into Chippewa County generally following State Highway 29, before connecting to the new Jump River Substation (owned by ATC) near Owen in Clark County.
Questions and Comments
Xcel Energy is always interested in feedback about the project and available to answer questions about how this project will deliver benefits to our customers and communities in Wisconsin and throughout the region. Please contact Xcel Energy through the addresses listed or the comment form below.
Typical Structures
Steel Monopole
Project Timeline
- Landowner and local government engagement, including public open houses : 2023 Completed
- Landowner and local government engagement, including public open houses : 2023 - 2024 Completed
- Begin developing Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) application : 2023 - 2024 Completed
- File CPCN application with PSCW : 2024 Completed
- PSCW reviews CPCN application, including public hearing: 2024 - 2025 Completed
- PSCW route decision expected : 2025 Completed
- Landowner negotiations and easement procurement : 2025 - 2026
- Landowner negotiations and easement procurement : 2025 - 2026
- Construction : 2026 -2027
- Project complete: 2027 - 2028