Belmont Light, NSTAR Join in Partnership to Build New Electric System

An agreement earlier this week will make the annual threat of summer brownouts a thing of the past. 

On Tuesday, May 21, the Belmont Light Board (made up of the three members of the Board of Selectmen) approved plans for the Belmont Municipal Light Department to construct a 115 kV single-loop transmission line to serve the town and build a new substation on Flanders Road as the most efficient and least costly solution to Belmont’s long-term power needs. 

"This is a permanent solution to the three problems facing Belmont, capacity, infrastructure and reliability of service," said Belmont Municipal Light's General Manager, Jim Palmer.

"With this project, the town will not outgrow its (electrical) capacity for the next 40 years," Palmer told Belmont Patch.

The final decision on the configuration comes 15 months after a Special Town Meeting voted unanimously on Feb. 8, 2012 to approve borrowing up to $53.7 million in municipal bonds to finance the project.

But Belmont Municipal Light customers will not see the anticipated double digit increase in electrical rates after the town utility announced a Joint Development Agreement with giant NSTAR which will reduce the town's eventual borrowing for the project to $23 million after selling the completed transmission line to the regional utility for $30 million. 

The Municipal Light Department will continue to be responsible for distribution, so when the lights go out, Belmont Municipal Light trucks and employees will be sent to restore power. 

"We have employed a vigorous and thorough process of analysis as well as some tough negotiation to get to where we are, but the process has served the people of Belmont well, and will continue to do so for many years to come” said Ashley Brown, Chair of the Belmont Light Advisory Board, in a press release issued Tuesday.

The Municipal Light project team expects the new line to go into service at the end of 2016 or the beginning of 2017, and the present substations, including 450 Concord Ave. to be retired and transferred to the Town by 2023.

And for the first time in its history, Belmont ratepayers will be fully integrated onto the New England electrical grid without having to pay an intermediary – NSTAR – for connections. 

NSTAR will make a return on their investment from ISO-NE through a regional network fee that Belmont pays into. 

In return, Belmont will no long pay the roughly $1 million annual fee it pays NSTAR to supply the existing 13.8 kV line. 

With the improvement in power distribution, the sale of the major new line and integration into the grid, rate increases for the average Belmont ratepayer will fall from the anticipated 14 percent to meet the cost of the project to something closer to 7 percent, according to the Light Department's calculations. 

While the decision to go with a 115 kV single-loop transmission line was made in consultation with NSTAR, technical approval from Independent System Operator -New England (ISO-NE) is still necessary before permitting and construction can begin as Belmont will become part of serving the regional electrical grid.

Palmer said the proposal has a greater chance of passing ISO-NE muster with NSTAR's backing.

Under the direction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), an ISO coordinates, controls and monitors the operation of the electrical power system, usually within a state, but sometimes encompassing multiple states such as ISO-NE.

The capacity of Belmont’s current electric delivery system is maxed out, suffering from significant power quality issues and with a distribution infrastructure that was antiquated and in need of a technological and physical upgrade.   

In the past year-and-a-half, Belmont Municipal Light and its project team worked closely with NSTAR to analyze and compare the technical merits and ownership options of a 115kV single-loop transmission line, 115 kV double-loop and radial options – which was favored by the Light Department's project team – and keeping the current 13.8 kV line. 

"It was ISO-NE who came back to use asking 'Do you really need a double loop?'" said Palmer. Going back to NSTAR who the Light Department thought demanded the two loops, the Department found that NSTAR would be happy with the least expensive single loop configuration. 

In the end, Belmont Light’s project team, the Municipal Light Advisory Board and the Belmont Light Board decided, and NSTAR agreed, that the least costly and most efficient alternative is a 115 kV single-loop transmission line.

While the joint agreement allows NSTAR to own the transmission line in their transmission territory outside of Belmont, the benefits of this ownership agreement for Belmont are substantial, according to Palmer as NSTAR will own the transmission assets, ISO-NE will operate the line.  

Palmer, expressed appreciation for the assistance of so many with Belmont’s best interests at heart. 

“While in many ways our work is just beginning on this critical project, the work that has been done over the past year should give us all confidence that Belmont is getting the best possible solution to address our power needs for decades to come. 

While working over the past year toward this final voltage determination and project configuration, Belmont Light has been busy on other phases of the project as well. 

Belmont Municipal Light finalized its purchase of 20 Flanders Rd. in December, 2012. The Light Department also negotiated and signed an easement agreement with the MBTA for access to the transmission line route and all soil and environmental testing along the route have been completed. 

The project team has also developed a highly detailed schedule model for each phase of the project as well as the overall anticipated time lines and associated budget. 

The next steps in the project include passage of Warrant Article 16 at next week’s Special Town Meeting, which addresses minor technical issues with the clearing up of the deed to 20 Flanders Rd., as well as the transfer of some easement rights to NSTAR for their pieces of the project.