The Quebec – New England Transmission (officially known in Quebec as the Réseau multiterminal à courant continu (RMCC)[1] and also known as Phase I / Phase II[2] and the Radisson - Nicolet - Des Cantons circuit[3]) is a long-distance high-voltage direct current (HVDC) line between Radisson, Quebec and Sandy Pond in Ayer, Massachusetts. In contrast to most other HVDC facilities, it is equipped with multiple static inverter stations.
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Initially, the Quebec – New England Transmission consisted of the 172 km (107 mi) section between the Des Cantons station near Windsor, Quebec and the Frank D. Comerford Dam near Monroe, New Hampshire which, because of the asynchronous operation of the American and Québec power grids, had to be implemented as HVDC. This bipolar electricity transmission line is overhead for its whole length except the crossing of Saint Lawrence river, went into service in 1986. It could transfer a maximum power of 690 megawatts. The operating voltage was ±450kV[4] or 900 kV from line to line.
The line was planned to extend beyond the two terminals at Des Cantons and Comerford to the hydroelectric power plants of the La Grande Complex, in the James Bay region of Québec, and to the high consumption area around Boston, Massachusetts. For this reason the line was extended by 1,100 kilometers to the north toward the static inverter plant at Radisson Substation and to the south to the static inverter plant at Sandy Pond in Massachusetts. The transmission power was increased by extending the existing static inverter stations to 2,000 megawatts. The value of the transmission voltage remained unchanged at ±450 kV. For the connection of the Montreal area, a further static inverter station at Nicolet was put into service in 1992 with a transmission capacity of 2,000 megawatts.
The line crosses the Saint Lawrence River between Grondines and Lotbinière via an underground tunnel.[5] Until the tunnel was built, the line crossed the river via an overhead lattice tower electricity pylon -- portions of one of these towers would later be used as part of the observation tower at La Cité de l'Énergie in Shawinigan.
In December 2008, Hydro-Québec, along with American utilities Northeast Utilities (parent company of Public Service of New Hampshire) and NSTAR (parent company of Boston Edison), created a joint venture to build a new HVDC line from Windsor, Quebec to Deerfield, New Hampshire, with an HVDC converter terminal built in Franklin, New Hampshire.[6] Hydro-Québec will own the segment within Quebec, while the segment within the US will be owned by Northern Pass Transmission LLC, a partnership between Northeast Utilities (75%) and NSTAR (25%).[7] Estimated to cost US$1.1 billion to build,[8] it is projected that the line will either run in existing right-of-way adjacent to the HVDC line that runs through New Hampshire, or it will connect to a right-of-way in northern New Hampshire that will run through the White Mountains. This 180-to-190-mile (290 to 310 km) line, projected to carry 1,200 megawatts, will bring electricity to approximately one million homes.[9]
In order to go ahead, the project must receive regulatory approval in Quebec and the United States. The proposed transmission line could be in operation in 2015.[10] According to Jim Robb, a senior executive from Northeast Utilities, New England could meet one third of its Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative commitments with the hydropower coming through this new power line alone.[11]
The purchase of power from Hydro-Québec was an issue during the Massachusetts gubernatorial election of 2010.[12]
In October 2010, Northeast Utilities announced that it would merge with NSTAR, with the resulting company retaining the Northeast Utilities name. The deal is subject to regulatory approval.[13] In effect, Northern Pass Transmission would become a wholly owned subsidiary of Northeast Utilities.
Important waypoints of the line.
| Site | Coordinates |
|---|---|
| Radisson, Quebec, Canada | |
| Saint-Maurice River, south of La Tuque, Quebec |
|
| Northern Cable Terminal of Saint Lawrence River Crossing, Grondines, Quebec, Canada |
|
| Southern Cable Terminal of Saint Lawrence River Crossing, Lotbinière, Quebec, Canada |
|
| Nicolet station, Sainte-Eulalie, Quebec, Canada |
|
| Des Cantons station, Windsor, Quebec, Canada |
|
| Des Cantons Grounding Electrode Windsor, Quebec, Canada |
| Site | Coordinates |
|---|---|
| Des Cantons station, Windsor, Quebec, Canada |
|
| Des Cantons Grounding Electrode Windsor, Quebec, Canada |
|
| Border crossing between USA and Canada (east of Stanhope, Quebec and Norton, Vermont) |
|
| Moore Dam / Connecticut River, Waterford, Vermont / Littleton, New Hampshire, USA |
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| Frank D. Comerford Dam / Comerford Static Inverter Plant, Monroe, New Hampshire, USA |
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| Merrimack River, East Merrimack/Litchfield, New Hampshire, USA |
|
| New Hampshire / Massachusetts state line Hudson, New Hampshire / Tyngsborough, Massachusetts, USA |
|
| Ayer, Massachusetts, USA |
Route listed here reflects the primary route, and is currently projected.[14]
| Site | Coordinates |
|---|---|
| Des Cantons station, Windsor, Quebec, Canada |
|
| Des Cantons Grounding Electrode Windsor, Quebec, Canada |
|
| Border crossing between USA and Canada / Connecticut River (west of Pittsburg, New Hampshire) |
|
| Northumberland, New Hampshire, USA | |
| Whitefield, New Hampshire, USA | |
| North Woodstock, New Hampshire, USA | |
| Beebe River, New Hampshire, USA | |
| Ashland, New Hampshire, USA | |
| Pemigewasset River, New Hampshire, USA | |
| Southern HVDC Converter Terminal, Franklin, New Hampshire, USA |
|
| Oak Hill, New Hampshire, USA | |
| Deerfield, New Hampshire, USA |
In 2004, shortly before U.S. President George W. Bush's visit to Canada, a tower along the Quebec – New England Transmission circuit in the Eastern Townships near the Canada-U.S. border was damaged by explosive charges detonated at its base. The CBC reported that a message, purportedly from the Résistance internationaliste and issued to the La Presse and Le Journal de Montréal newspapers and CKAC radio, stated that the attack had been carried out to "denounce the 'pillaging' of Quebec's resources by the United States."[3][15]