Based on recommended timeline, controversial transmission line likely won't be built soon
MARYLAND (WBFF) — As the developers behind the 67-mile transmission project seek state approval, staff members at the Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC) are recommending a timeline for the proceedings, giving a glimpse at how long the process could take.
The recommendation, which still needs to be approved by Commissioners at the PSC, would set the timeline for an official decision on the proposed project by March of 2027.
The developers (Public Service Enterprise Group) were hoping to have a decision on the project by March of 2026, a full year earlier, in order to get the project up and running by June of 2027. Since PSEG officials said construction could take between 15-18 months, if state officials do end up approving the project, by this timeline, it would not be finished until mid-2028 at the earliest.
“It’s reassuring to see his staff recommending this schedule that really is very purposeful in terms of allowing time for the process and for the public involvement,” said Jenny Teeter, a landowner in Carroll County.
“You know, maybe we can take a little bit of a breath now,” she added.
PSEG has been pushing for an in-service date of June 2027, citing major grid reliability issues and possible brownouts and blackouts if it is not built. However, opponents of the transmission line have long-questioned its need, arguing it will largely support data centers in Northern Virginia.
“If PJM’s contention that we will be having blackouts and brownouts by June of 2027, you know, doesn’t really happen in June of 2027, then it also really calls into question the purpose for the whole project,” Teeter said.
Overall, the PSC staff is recommending the timeline set forth by Power Plant Research Group, another state agency participating in the approval process. Staff with the PSC called PPRP’s proposal “more realistic, in light of all the issues that need to be considered in this proceeding.”
If the timeline is approved, PSEG would be required to submit data from land surveys, which just started a week ago, by this winter into next spring. Hearings would begin in September 2026, and additional testimony would be heard in October and November 2026. Evidentiary hearings would follow in December of 2026, with a final decision reached by March of 2027.
It is not clear when the Commissioners will make a determination on the schedule, but a spokesperson said it was expected sooner rather than later.
Previously in January, PSC Chair Fred Hoover called PSEG’s timeline unrealistic.
“This is not a short process,” Hoover said during a FOX45 News Your Voice, Your Future Town Hall on January 2. “Even if everybody agreed that this was a good idea, it’s not a short process. It’s a very long process. I think the expectation that the company has put in the applications not realistic.”
A spokesperson from PSEG said they were reviewing the PSC’s recommended timeline but cannot comment further at this time.
When asked how long it will take PSEG to complete the environmental surveys, a spokesperson responded, “Due to the ongoing litigation to gain additional Rights of Entry, as well as other factors, we cannot project a completion date for the surveys.”