SOUTH BLOOMFIELD, Ohio — The public comment period has closed on a proposed high-voltage transmission line that could cut through Pickaway County, with the developer now reviewing resident feedback as it works toward narrowing down a final route, according to a project update shared by the Village of South Bloomfield.
Grid Growth Ventures, the company behind the project, hosted five open houses across its five-county study area between Sept. 21 and Oct. 1, including a Pickaway County session on Sept. 28, so residents could learn about the proposed routes and submit feedback. The window for submitting comments on the study segments closed Oct. 15, the company said.
The company is now reviewing the feedback it received as part of refining the study segments for the project, known as Grid Growth East. That review also factors in environmental constraints, land use, historic and cultural resources, existing infrastructure and other sensitive areas, with the goal of minimizing impacts to the community and environment while balancing cost, line length and design requirements, according to the company.
At the same time, Grid Growth Ventures said it will begin additional engineering studies and field surveys to help identify a proposed route for the transmission line. Some landowners may be contacted about survey activity that could take place on their property as that work continues into spring 2027.
Once those routing studies are complete, the company said it expects to identify a proposed route for each of its two transmission line segments in early 2027. A second round of open houses would follow, giving landowners and residents another chance to review the proposed routes, ask questions and share feedback before applications are submitted to state regulators.
The project centers on two planned 765-kilovolt transmission lines. The Adkins–West Millersport line would run roughly 42 miles connecting a substation in Pickaway County to one in Fairfield County, while the Conesville–Guernsey line would run about 32 miles between substations in Coshocton and Guernsey counties. Both already carry case numbers with the Ohio Power Siting Board, the state agency that must approve any route before construction can begin: Case No. 26-0813-EL-BTX for the Adkins–West Millersport line and Case No. 26-0812-EL-BTX for the Conesville–Guernsey line.
Grid Growth Ventures said it still intends to file applications with the siting board in spring 2027. The company anticipates a decision from the board by late 2027, with construction running from late 2027 through the summer of 2030 and the lines going into service that summer.
Grid Growth Ventures is a joint venture combining Transource Energy — a partnership between American Electric Power and Evergy — with FirstEnergy Transmission. PJM Interconnection, the regional transmission organization that coordinates the flow of electricity across Ohio and surrounding states, selected the company to develop the lines after a competitive proposal process tied to growing regional power demand.
Residents with questions can reach the project team at [email protected] or 513-830-9051. Additional project materials, including route maps, are available at GridGrowthVentures.com/EasternOhio.
The information contained in this story was obtained from a project update shared by the Village of South Bloomfield.
