50 miles of new high-voltage power lines are planned in Michigan, with more on the way. More big power line projects are coming to Michigan, starting with 50 miles of high-voltage lines that will cut across three counties around Lansing. ITC Michigan, the owner of much of the Lower Peninsula’s transmission system, has unveiled preliminary route options for a new project stretching between Eaton and Livingston counties, running south of Lansing. Ben Tirrell, regional manager of local government and community affairs for ITC, says, "It is an initial starting point, and what we need now is community involvement. We want to hear what folks across this region think of these options." New transmission lines can benefit utility ratepayers by cutting grid congestion, boosting reliability and unlocking cheaper power sources as electricity is whisked great distances. The lines connect power plants with the distribution grid, the local lines owned by utilities that hook up to homes and businesses. But siting the high-voltage power corridors is often contentious. Landowners often chafe at the prospect of hundred-foot power poles on their property. Developers can forcibly acquire easements through eminent domain after getting state approval, meaning they have little recourse to stop projects that advance that far. Michigan regulators had harsh words for ITC and a subsidiary while approving the path for 95 miles of new lines across two projects in July. The company took an "easy, lazy path" when routing the lines, treated landowners in a "dismissive" way and barely cleared a "shockingly low bar" for public input, members of the normally reserved Michigan Public Service Commission said at the time. ITC executives promise they heard the concerns and took them seriously, introducing a slew of new ways to engage with landowners and other stakeholders when planning new projects. The new, 345-kilovolt project is set to start at a substation in Eaton County’s Oneida Township, southwest of Grand Ledge, run through Ingham County south of Lansing and connect to a planned station in Livingston County’s Cohoctah Township, northeast of Fowlerville. ITC has already held "local leader" listening sessions with municipal and county officials in eight locations over the summer, according to Tirrell, and is now transitioning to a series of community open houses in January and February. It has a map of potential routes, but they are all subject to revision before ITC presents the pathways to regulators in late 2026 or early 2027, Tirrell said. The law requires it to submit at least two, a proposed and alternate route, for siting approval, which can then take up to a year. More community meetings will take place near the time the construction plan is filed, according to Marshall. With the projects that were approved over the summer and are now proceeding toward construction, transmission developers encountered pushback from owners of centennial farms, air strips and family property chosen to host 200-foot, cleared easements for power poles and lines. They weigh factors like proximity to homes and environmental impact to narrow down thousands of possible routes. Sometimes that means using already-disturbed corridors like freeways or utility easements, but that is not always possible. "The shortest way from A to B goes right through the city of Lansing on I-496, but there’s reasons why we can’t do that," Tirrell said, citing existing development along the highway. The new project is part of a $22-billion rollout of more than 3,600 miles of high-voltage power lines across the Midwest planned by the regional grid operator. That entity, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, or MISO, acts as a sort of air traffic controller for the transmission grid in the central U.S. and runs wholesale power markets. Power customers end up paying for new lines through charges on utility bills, but MISO estimates they will get two to three times the value back. That’s because new transmission lines allow cheaper energy, including renewable wind and solar power, to be tapped when needed. Transmission limitations also hinder new power sources from being added for the grid, contributing to a logjam in proposals. MISO estimates the broader portfolio of projects will cost ratepayers about $5 per 1,000 kilowatt-hours of energy used, while providing $10 to $18 in value over the same amount of usage each month. That means they get praise from advocates who are normally focused on cutting utility costs. "By allowing power to flow more efficiently and enabling cheaper sources of electricity to connect to the grid, transmission lines like these represent a win for consumers," said Amy Bandyk, executive director of the Citizens Utility Board of Michigan, a nonprofit advocating for residential ratepayers. The top-down power line planning effort aims to meet future needs, as projects can take up to 10 years to route, permit and build. There’s no "one-to-one correlation" between where a project is built and where there might be new customers needing power or power plants ready to provide it, Marshall said. Michiganders from all across the Lower Peninsula might have reason to pay close attention. In addition to the Oneida-Sabine Lake project, the MISO plan calls for more than 300 miles of new high-voltage lines to be built in the coming years across the Lower Peninsula. Other projects are in "early stages," ITC representatives say. Meanwhile, Michigan regulators are focused on improving the state-level planning process, following concerns with the prior ITC projects. They’ve proposed a slew of voluntary guidelines for developers aimed at informing more residents about potential line siting and increasing transparency. In a regulatory filing, ITC has pushed back on some of the measures, while promising it shares in the goal of "ensuring a clear, efficient, and transparent" process. A map of preliminary routes and information about community meetings related to the new ITC project is available at mifuturegrid.com/oneida-sabine-lake/. * Utilities win $383M verdict in trial claiming botched rebuild of Lake Michigan power plant * Kent County residents halt Microsoft data center plan * Bills would target water use, utility costs tied to Michigan data center boom * Michigan’s largest AI data center can move ahead after DTE wins key approval * Saginaw City Council directs city to regulate data center construction amid AI boom
