Contact: Lori Buffington [email protected] Office: (763) 445-­‐5714 Cell: (763) 486-­‐9226 Crews install tallest structure on CapX2020 Brookings project Structure stands nearly 200 feet tall NEAR WHITE, S.D. – August 27, 2014 -­‐ Crews installed the largest transmission structure on the CapX2020 Brookings County-­‐Hampton project Thursday near White, S.D. The structure, one of 1,435 on the project, stands nearly 200 feet tall to accommodate a unique situation — the CapX2020 line will cross over the top of an existing 115 kV transmission line at that particular location. The base of this structure is 13 feet in diameter, and the bottom segment alone weighs 64,000 pounds. The CapX2020 Brookings County-­‐Hampton 345 kV transmission line stretches 250 miles from the Brookings County, S.D., substation through the new Cedar Mountain substation in Renville County and between the new Helena and Hampton substations. Construction on the project began July 15, 2010, and the entire project is scheduled to be energized early next year. About CapX2020 CapX2020 is a joint initiative of 11 investor-­‐owned cooperative and municipal utilities in Minnesota and the surrounding region to upgrade and expand the electricity transmission grid to ensure continued reliable and affordable service. The CapX2020 projects include four 345 kV lines and a 230 kV line and represent the largest development of new transmission in the Upper Midwest in 30 years. They are projected to cost more than $2 billion and cover a distance of nearly 800 miles. Crews guided the base of the tallest transmission structure on the CapX2020 Brookings County-­‐
Hampton project Thursday near White, S.D. The structure stands nearly 200 feet tall and weighs 64,000 pounds.