Current Affairs: Moving forward with the Riverside Transmission Reliability Project

The Riverside Transmission Reliability Project, or RTRP, is a 230,000 Volt (230 kV) electric transmission line that will provide a second interconnection to the statewide electric grid for the City of Riverside. The line itself will be built, owned and operated by Southern California Edison. There will also be a new substation that will convert the 230 kV power to 69 kV and associated new and upgraded 69kV lines to distribute the power to RPU-owned substations around the city. These will be owned and operated by RPU.

The project has been in the planning and permitting stage for over a decade and was approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) in March of 2020. That decision was appealed but the CPUC denied the appeal. The approved project will mix overhead and underground construction of the 230 kV transmission line. The primary issue raised in the permitting and appeal process was whether more, or all, of the line should be built underground. While recognizing some benefits of additional underground construction, the CPUC found that additional undergrounding would have a greater overall environmental impact than the project as approved.

In May of this year, the Riverside City Council voted to move forward with the remainder of the RPU portion of the project. The time for a motion to reconsider that decision ran out in June, so the project as a whole is now fully approved and ready to move forward.

There is some talk of state legislation to mandate additional undergrounding of the 230 kV line, but this was attempted this year and failed. The CPUC is the agency charged with reviewing and approving the transmission line, and they conducted their normal rigorous examination before approving the project. It is unlikely the legislature would be willing to retroactively interfere in this process should another bill be introduced next year.

Southern California Edison is moving forward with final design, property acquisition and material ordering. Edison anticipates beginning construction in the first quarter of 2025. RPU is moving forward with the lower voltage portions of the project in parallel.  

Some parties have raised the issue that Edison does not yet have easements or ownership of all the right of way needed for the project, and one property owner is reported to have said they will not sell or grant an easement. This sometimes happens with utility projects. Utilities like Edison have the power of Eminent Domain and can get a court order to acquire ownership or easements across property. The courts almost always grant immediate possession of the property to the utility and considers only the price to be paid. I do not anticipate right of way acquisition to be a significant hurdle or delaying factor.

This is a large, complex project with many components. It will take several years to complete. Construction schedules can be affected by a variety of things including weather delays, material availability, labor issues, and even pandemics. At this point, it is not possible to specify completion dates for individual project components or the project as a whole. Both Edison and RPU have websites for the project that show schedules which are updated regularly.

When completed, the RTRP will provide a significant regional benefit. Although it does not directly serve the neighboring cities it passes through or near, it will provide more reliable electricity for the hospitals, universities and government services the residents of those cities rely on.