Progress is being made on the first phase of ITC Holdings’ Thumb Loop project, The Detroit Free Press reported last week.

“The U.S. grid is aging and stretched to capacity,” reports the Washington Post. And storms causing power outages this summer in the Mid-Atlantic region and blackouts in the past year across the country have experts warning that such occurrences “may become more common as the voracious demand for power continues to grow.”

TransmissionHub recently reported that their data shows spending on transmission projects in North America will ramp up significantly between 2012 and 2015, where $68.6 billion in projects are scheduled to come online by 2015.

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) recently released an economic study on the U.S.’s electricity infrastructure. The report assessed how much investment is required to ensure that the nation’s aging transmission, generation, and distribution systems do not adversely impact the country’s businesses and households.

A few Texas State Senators are concerned that a sustained drought could lead to brownouts, impact grid reliability, and diminish economic growth.

A new study from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) looks at the current state of the grid and identifies a path toward addressing the challenges the U.S. transmission system will face over the next two decades.

The House Energy and Commerce’s Subcommittee on Energy and Power hears testimony on transmission-related issues.

FERC Commissioner Marc Spitzer discusses FERC Order 1000 and the importance of regional planning.

ITC’s Carl Huslig praises Kansas and the surrounding region’s policy on transmission development.

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback and FERC member Marc Spitzer headline an transmission event in Kansas.