http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2010/08/californias...

Most large-scale renewable resources are usually in remote areas rather than near major load centers and to access these resources, new transmission infrastructure needs to be developed.
by Sally Maki and Ryan Pletka, Black & Veatch
Published: August 25, 2010
Tulsa -- Since 2007, more money has been spent each year on renewable energy electricity capacity than on conventional power. Twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia have established Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) and six more states have renewable portfolio goals targeting the addition of a significant amount of renewable energy capacity in the coming years.

Unlike conventional energy, renewable power plants need to be built where the resources are, which is often far from existing development and electricity transmission. However, unlike building a new natural gas power plant where 500 MW of capacity can be built in a central location of choice, renewable resources are more spread out and geographically sensitive. Most large-scale renewable resources are also usually in remote areas rather than near major load centers. To access these resources, new transmission infrastructure needs to be developed. Even projects built near existing transmission find there is little available capacity and that the queue for interconnection is quite long.

If states are going to meet their RPS goals, most of them are looking at a substantial amount of new transmission development required