A high-capacity power line connecting Maine Public Service Co. of Presque Isle with the rest of the New England power grid would provide cheaper, more reliable power and economic benefits to Aroostook County, project representatives said Friday.

The Maine Power Connection, as it is called, could allow Aroostook County to become a renewable energy center for Maine and the rest of New England, Maine Public Service CEO Brent Boyles said in a telephone interview Friday. The Maine Public Service system now is separated by a 25-mile gap between its lines in Houlton and the Maine Electric Power Co. line that travels from Haynesville to southern and central Maine.

Maine Public Service has transmission requests for more than 800 megawatts of potential wind generation projects. Connecting Maine Public Service to the New England grid with a 345-kilovolt transmission line would support those projects, Boyles said.

But the Maine Power Connection was not developed initially to accommodate wind power. Instead, it was proposed as a possible solution to the lack of electricity generation competition in northern Maine, Boyles said. In 2006, the Maine Public Utilities Commission received only one standard offer bid, or wholesale rate for electricity, and launched an inquiry with utility companies to find a way to increase competition.

The price of electricity has risen sharply in Aroostook County in the past year, but remains comparable to, if not lower than, prices in the rest of the state.

“We hope [the Maine Power Connection] could eventually lower electrical costs, which are a very significant component for manufacturers and processors,” said Bob Clark, executive director of the Northern Maine Development Commission in Caribou. Clark is not directly involved in the project, but said he is in favor of its construction.

Maine Public Service and Central Maine Power are evaluating the use of existing transmission corridors between Houlton and Haynesville and a possible new route between Limestone and Houlton. There is also talk of a new route between Chester and Detroit because of transmission congestion around Orrington, Boyles said.

The lines would total between 150 and 200 miles and cost $400 million to $500 million.

“Altogether, this could increase system reliability for northern Maine, the rest of the state and New England,” said Kay Rand, managing director of Bernstein Shur Government Solutions, the public and community relations consultant for the project.

Maine Public Service also is analyzing the feasibility of a third 345-kilovolt transmission line to eastern Canada.

CMP also is working on what it calls the Maine Power Reliability Program, a proposed 200-mile, 345-kilovolt transmission line that would run near its existing 345-kilovolt line from Orrington to Newington, N.H.

The Maine Power Connection project relies heavily on the support of ISO-New England and its member utilities. If ISO-New England believes a project will enhance electric power reliability, then it allows the cost of the project to be divided among ratepayers. But if Maine pulls out of ISO-New England, Boyles said the project will be difficult to fund. Gov. John Baldacci on Friday signed into law a bill that would allow Maine to withdraw from ISO New England if the PUC determines that such a move is in the state’s best interest.

“The probability that this project would be built is minimized if Maine withdraws from ISO-New England,” said Boyles.

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