On January 8, 2010, Pepco Holdings Inc. (“Pepco”) asked the Maryland Public Service Commission (“PSC”) to suspend their procedural schedule for the Mid-Atlantic Power Pathway transmission project (“MAPP”).  Pepco asked for the delay to be contingent on the PJM Interconnection LLC’s (“PJM”) completion of a review of the entire project.  Pepco has asked that the procedure, originally scheduled for March 1 and 8, 2010, be rescheduled for June.

MAPP is a 150-mile 500 kV transmission line that will run from Northern Virginia, through the Delmarva Peninsula, and to Maryland’s Eastern Shore.  Originally, MAPP was part of PJM’s $1.4 Billion Transmission upgrade that was intended to relieve congestion all the way from Virginia to New Jersey (see October 23, 2009 edition of the WER).  However, the project has since terminated its Delaware to New Jersey segment. 

The original project studies also relied on a related Virginia project, the Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline (“PATH”), to have been completed and in service by 2014.  However, that project has also recently been delayed (see January 8, 2010 edition of the WER).  In May 2009, PJM determined that the PATH Project will not be needed in 2014 as initially anticipated.  Subsequently, Allegheny Energy Inc. and American Electric Co. Inc. withdrew their applications for the project with the Virginia Corporation Commission.  PJM has announced that they will be re-evaluating their 2010 Regional Transmission Expansion Plan according to the new PATH developments.

The original MAPP filing to the Maryland PSC is available on its website under Case No. 9179 and Maillog No. 120847 at:  http://webapp.psc.state.md.us/Intranet/Maillog/submit_new.cfm?MaillogPath=120847&DirPath=C:\Casenum\Admin%20Filings\110000-159999\120847&maillognum=120847.