MORGANTOWN – In an unusual turn of events, 12 people have filed letters of support for the MARL transmission line with the Public Service Commission.
However, only one letter comes from any of the four affected counties.
The PSC has received 3,899 letters of opposition to NextEra Energy Transmission MidAtlantic’s proposed MidAtlantic Resiliency Link Project.
The five letters of support are a first in public comment submitted to the PSC.
About 58.9 miles of the 107.5 mile line would cross West Virginia: 5.9 miles across Monongalia County, 15.8 across Preston, 10.9 across Mineral and 26.2 across Hampshire.
One of the 12 letters came from a Preston resident. It says:
“Frequent outages weaken rural communities and local economies. President Trump has called for a stronger national grid, and MARL is a practical step toward that goal while delivering jobs and tax revenue for West Virginia.”
The other letters – from Marshall, Kanawha, Mingo,Wood, Putnam and Jefferson Counties – also mention Trump’s goals and cite the positives of construction jobs, tax revenue and national security.
Like so many of the opposition letters, they rely on a general template and use similar language.
The letter from a Kanawha resident says: “Projects like MARL bring real benefits to rural communities. The proposed line would create 200 to 300 construction jobs, generate millions in wages, and provide ongoing economic activity while strengthening the electric grid. I urge approval.”
And the letter from Wood County says, “Modern transmission is essential for rural economic growth and national security.”
While 11 of the 12 letters come from counties outside the proposed line route, rate impacts would affect them all. NextEra has said the line will affect power rates for customers of Mon Power, Potomac Edison, Appalachian Power Company and Wheeling Power Company.
Opposition to the line has focused on a few themes, with two most outstanding: disturbances to West Virginia rural land and landowners for a line that will bring no new energy to West Virginia – sending it from Pennsylvania to Virginia data centers; and rate impacts.
Cathy Kunkel, energy consultant at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, drew on a study she’s published to explain some of the issues. PJM, she said, indicates that data centers are placing new demands on power generation, leading to possible capacity shortages.
She projects that MARL will cost Mon Power and Potomac Edison ratepayers $165 million over 40 years, with the related Valley Link Transmission line – that is planned to run from the John Amos plant in Putnam County eastward to Frederick County, Md. – costing another $223 million.
NextEra has projected rate impacts compared to current rates for Mon Power and Potomac Edison residential customers for each year from 2026 through 2036: 2026, 12 cents; 2027, 33 cents; 2028, 46 cents; 2029, 61 cents; 2030, 70 cents; 2031, 75 cents; 2032, $1; 2033, 97 cents; 2034, 94 cents; 2035, 92 cents; 2036, 91 cents.
The current cost estimate for MARL is $1.167 billion. Of this, the current cost estimate for the West Virginia portions is $482,706,000. These estimates include siting, engineering, construction, financing, administration, and legal costs.
NextEra has also submitted a proposed procedural schedule to the PSC. Among the key proposed dates: evidentiary hearing Oct. 26-Nov. 2 (following discovery and testimony); decision due date, March 6, 2027.
NextEra also proposes public comment hearings to be held in May or June this year.
