Hear our interview with SDG&E’s project manager on the
proposed route
By Miriam Raftery
April 27, 2026 (San Diego’s East County) – The state wants SDG&E to build Golden Pacific Powerlink, a new 500 kilovolt high-voltage line. The project would run from Imperial County through San Diego’s East County and North County, including Anza Borrego Desert State Park, then head northeast near Santa Ysabel and Warner Sprigns and into Riverside and Orange Counties. SDG&E will host two virtual open houses on May 12 and 14 at 12 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. both days. Sign up to attend.
ECM’s editor interviewed Erica Martin, SDG&E’s project director, for our show on KNSJ.
Read highlights below, or click the audio link below this article to hear the full interview.
Q: San Diego County already has two high voltage transmission lines, Sunrise Powerlink and Southwest Powerlink. Why does SDG&E believe there is a need for a third transmission line?
A: Actually, SDG&E did not determine the purpose and need for this project. This project came from California’s state transmission planning project and was approved by the California Independent Systems Operator (CAISO) as being necessary to achieve the state’s energy goals.
Q: Please describe the proposed route of the Golden Pacific Powerlink. What communities will it go through or near, what highways or major geographic features such as mountains or valleys will it track?
A: We are in a very preliminary phase of the project development…CAISO determines the origination and the termination points of the line, so it will start in SDG&E’s existing substation Imperial Valley…(then) go north and generally head west to the termination point in south Orange County. We have published a preliminary route corridor which is SDG&E’s starting point. That’s the result of our preliminary designing, engineering, and preliminary environmental review. But as it enters the formal regulatory process, that is when the reviews of environmental impacts and additional design and engineering decisions will be made. Ultimately it is the CPUC that will determine the route…the preliminary route does go through Anza Borrego Desert State Park, comes out just south of Warner Springs…it will track Highway 79, then it will go up north into Riverside County into Temecula before it heads west to terminate in a new substation, and that location is yet to be identified. That substation will not be built by SDG&E.
Q: Why not go around Anza Borrego Desert State Park instead of through the heart of it, given the major backlash that forced rerouting of Sunrise Powerlink when it was proposed through the park?
A: CAISO did identify the beginning of the line in Imperial Valley and going up and northwest. The geography is different for this project than it was for Sunrise Powerlink. Affordability is top of mind for SDG&E so as we are looking at the best way to get between those two points, we\re trying to take into account a variety of considerations including costs, impacts to communities, and of course impacts to the environment. After our preliminary review of engineer and cost analysis, that is we think the most defensible route…
Q: Would the proposed route go through Cleveland National Forest, Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, or any other state, federal, or county parks or preserves? Or be visible from those locations?
A: We are in the very preliminary design phase…there haven’t been any decisions made…The current route does not go through Cleveland National Forest of Cuyamaca State Park. There will likely be Bureau of Land Management that is involved…in Imperial County where the existing substation is located, it is surrounded by BLM land.
Q: SG&E plans to host several virtual open houses to inform the public about these projects. When are those scheduled and how can people sign up?
A: There will be four virtual open houses held on May 12 and May 14, noon and 5:30 p.m. to capture both lunch hour and people available evenings. The content will be the same at both…More information can be found on our project website, GoldenPacificPowerlink.com.
Q: Are any more planned beyond the four in mid-May? Will you hold any in-person events for people who may not have internet access?
A: Yes that’s a great question. We are planning additional in-person meetings in the summer and fall of this year that SDG&E will host prior to beginning that formal regulatory process. We’re still trying to determine locations…and will in part depend feedback we get from those virtual meetings to determine the places where there is the greatest interest and the greatest need for feedback…
Q: How can people submit comments for the record that the CPUC will review?
A: Once SDG&E files our application at the CPUC in …fall and winter of this year, that will trigger the formal regulatory and environmental review process, and that is when comments can be submitted as part of the additional outreach that the CPUC will do….
Q: When is the CPUC expected to approve (or deny) the proposed route, and what is the deadline for the public to weigh in?
A: We are planning to file our application before the end of the year and then the CPUC will set the schedule after that…You can also go onto our website where we will post updates, so the project website is another source for that as well.
Q: SDG&E is paid by the mile for new transmission lines, as I understand it. Power is used primarily in urban areas, yet this line would run primarily through rural, mountain and desert areas. If a new substation is being built at the Orange County line, why not route lines directly to densely populated urban areas that use the most power?
A: We look to the CAISO to study the system and determine the places where the electricity is needed the most…that would be a question for them.
Q: How much of the new anticipated demand is due to potential new AI data centers, such as the one proposed in Imperial Valley?
A: There’s no particular source that’s driving the need for this project. It’s the forecasted demand …to meet the state’s energy goals including to meet the electrification goals of transportation, industry, and building…
Q: When do you hope construction of Golden Pacific Powerlink could begin, the CPUC could approve it, and when do you anticipate completion, if the project is approved?
A: The Transmission Independent Systems Operator has set an inservice date of 2032, so we hope that we would have a decision from CPUC and other relative agencies in advance of that…our current schedule has construction beginning in 2029 but that depends on the approval process.
Q: How might SDG&E mitigate any negative impacts to people living near the lines?,
A: The purpose of this public outreach particularly in this early phase is to ask that question…and determine what the questions and reactions across the region but especially where the project will be built.
Q: So fire clearance as mitigation is something people might request, as was done near some properties close to Sunrise Powerlink?
A: This is exactly the type of feedback that we’re hoping to receive.
Q: The Sunrise Powerlink was a highly controversial project. What have you learned as a result of that process, and have you made any changes as a result?
A: Certainly there has been a significant passage of time since Sunrise Powerlink was built and part of what you’re seeing with this early public outreach is early efforts to be transparent with the public…education and inform ourselves about what those prospective concerns might be…so that we can take that into account in our design and development process.
Q: It was SDG&E that reached out to us requesting this issue. Where can people find more information about the Golden Pacific Powerlink?
A.. You can find any information about the proposed 500 KV transmission line at
www.goldenpacificpowerlink.com. You can also use that website to sign up for the virtual open houses May 12 and 14, as well as to get general information and provide information on the Golden Pacific Powerlink Project so far.
Q: Is there anything else you’d like our audience to know about the proposed Golden Pacific Powerlink?
A: Thank you, Miriam. I’m grateful to have an opportunity to talk with you. We welcome the community feedback and participation. This is the very early planning process but this project will enter the formal regulatory process where additional study and evaluation of impacts and routing will continue. We’ve go a long road ahead.