Western Governors have been working together regionally to encourage increased investment in cleaner and more diverse energy sources in the West, but a critical barrier to continued expansion of renewable energy in the region has been the lack of transmission lines to areas with the greatest potential.

For that reason, Western Governors and the U.S. Department of Energy have launched the Western Renewable Energy Zones (WREZ) project. Utilizing those areas in the West with vast renewable resources to expedite the development and delivery of clean and renewable energy is central to the goal of the project. Participating in the project are 11 states, two Canadian provinces, and areas in Mexico that are part of the Western Interconnection.

The goal of the WREZ is to generate:

1) reliable information for use by decision-makers that supports the cost-effective and environmentally sensitive development of renewable energy in specified zones, and

2) conceptual transmission plans for delivering that energy to load centers within the Western Interconnection. A number of factors will be considered, including the potential for development, timeframes, common transmission needs and costs.

The project will evaluate all feasible renewable resource technologies that are likely to contribute to the realization of the goal in WGA’s policy resolution that calls for the development of 30,000 megawatts of clean and diversified energy by 2015.

Guiding this initiative will be the WREZ Steering Committee, comprising governors, public utility commissioners and premiers. Officials from the Departments of Energy, Interior and Agriculture, as well as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, will participate as ex officio members.