The specific authorization granted in the ROD is a Certificate of Compliance as required under the Montana Major Facilities Siting Act and is the state permit required to proceed with the project.
The ROD was issued 20 days after the DEQ and the Department of Energy, jointly
issued the environmental impact statement, for the MATL line on October 1, 2008.
The Governor of Montana, Brian Schweitzer, presented the permit to Johan van t Hof, Chief Executive Officer of Tonbridge Power at a press conference in Helena Montana this morning.
The Certificate of Compliance authorizes the construction of a transmission line along the preferred alternative that was selected by the DEQ and the US Department of Energy and was described in the Final Environmental Impact Statement. The preferred alternative is a combination of MATL's proposed alternative and an alternative developed by the agencies with some local routing
options.
The only outstanding permit required before construction can begin is the Presidential Permit. This permit allows the Company to construct, operate, maintain and connect the MATL line across the US-Canadian border and its issuance is the responsibility of the DOE. Legislation requires that the
DOE wait at least 30 days post issuance of the EIS before their ROD and Presidential Permit can be issued, which period expires in early November 2008.
MATL received all the Canadian permits required to build the line earlier this year.
"We are truly appreciative of the great effort that has gone into this permitting process from all stakeholders," remarked Johan van't Hof, CEO, Tonbridge Power Inc. "The affected land owners, the regulatory professionals and the responsible officials worked very hard to ensure this project would be properly vetted. Special recognition goes out to the Governor's office which, under Governor Brian Schweitzer's guidance, gave us tremendous support in guiding a project to benefit the citizens of Montana."
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