News > Beyond the Plug: Load-Serving Transmission

Beyond the Plug: Load-Serving Transmission

September 4, 2024

While the local distribution grid carries electricity to homes, farms and businesses, the electric system has additional infrastructure to deliver more energy over longer distances.

Great River Energy, the wholesale power supplier to Stearns Electric owns and operates transmission lines that operate at higher voltages and carry power from sources such as power plants and wind farms throughout Minnesota.

Transmission lines that carry large amounts of power to communities are referred to as “load-serving” transmission lines. These medium-sized power lines deliver power at voltages between 34.5 kilovolts (kV) and 115 kV. Most homes are served voltages that are a thousand times less (i.e., 115 volts) and make up most of the electric transmission system. Great River Energy owns and operates more than 3,000 miles of transmission lines at these voltages.

Load-serving transmission is an important key to helping deliver reliable energy to your community all day, every day.