Committee approves reserve release to SFPUC for Transmission Lines 7-8 upgrades

Margaret Hannaford, division manager for Hetch Hetchy Water Power at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, asked the Budget and Finance Committee on May 8 to release approximately $2.4 million from committee reserves to fund the Transmission Lines 7-8 upgrade project.

Hannaford emphasized these are mitigation payments from renewable-energy developers, not city general-fund or ratepayer dollars. She said the total project estimate is about $35.4 million, the SFPUC expects about $33.3 million in mitigation contributions for the project, and it has received roughly $29.9 million to date. Construction began in September 2022 and the SFPUC expects construction completion by June 5, 2024, with contract closeout by Dec. 31, 2024.

The BLA recommended approval, noting these revenues are mitigation payments tied to interconnection work and that the funds will be used to upgrade two Central Valley transmission lines. The committee approved the release on a 3-0 roll call (Mandelmann, Melgar, Chan), and the hearing was filed.