NorthWestern Energy and Smart Wires have been selected for grant funding through the U.S. Department of Energy’s SPARK program for a transmission upgrade designed to increase electricity transfer capability between Montana and Wyoming without building a new transmission line.
The project will deploy advanced transmission technologies along an existing transmission corridor in southeastern Montana. NorthWestern Energy and Smart Wires plan to use advanced power-flow control and dynamic line rating technologies to address transmission constraints and increase the utilization of existing infrastructure.
The companies say the upgrade will improve the movement of electricity between Montana and Wyoming while supporting transfers across the regional transmission system.
Project targets existing transmission constraints
Rather than developing a new transmission corridor, the project will focus on getting more capability from infrastructure already in place.
NorthWestern Energy said the project will increase transfer capability in southeastern Montana and improve the utility’s ability to move electricity across the regional system. The approach also avoids the need for new transmission line construction or major substation expansions as part of the announced project.
The strategy reflects a broader federal push to increase the amount of electricity that utilities can move across existing transmission networks. DOE selected 31 projects across 26 states through SPARK, with the program focused on reconductoring and advanced transmission technologies that can expand grid capacity and improve reliability.
SmartValve will control power flows across the corridor
Smart Wires will deploy its SmartValve advanced power-flow control technology as part of the project.
The technology will target the corridor’s limiting element and give NorthWestern Energy greater control over how electricity flows across the transmission network. Smart Wires said the modular design can also allow the system to scale or be redeployed as transmission needs change.
Power-flow control can help utilities manage how electricity uses interconnected transmission paths, particularly when one part of a corridor becomes a constraint while other infrastructure still has available capacity.
The project will pair that technology with dynamic line rating.
Dynamic line rating allows operators to adjust the usable capacity of transmission infrastructure based on changing operating conditions rather than relying solely on fixed assumptions. Together, the two technologies are intended to improve the use of existing transmission assets and increase transfer capability between Montana and Wyoming.
Upgrade supports regional power transfers
NorthWestern Energy said increasing transfer capability in southeastern Montana could improve system reliability, provide access to additional energy resources and support transfers between regional electricity markets.
The project therefore focuses on transmission capacity rather than adding a new source of electricity generation.
That distinction is important as utilities face increasing pressure to move electricity through existing networks. DOE’s SPARK program specifically targets projects that can expand usable grid capacity while making greater use of existing infrastructure and rights-of-way.
Part of a larger federal transmission initiative
DOE announced its SPARK selections in September 2026 as part of a broader effort to accelerate transmission upgrades across the United States.
The department said the 31 selected projects across 26 states would receive a combined $1.9 billion in federal funding alongside $3.35 billion in recipient cost sharing. The projects are expected to reconductor or rebuild more than 1,500 miles of transmission lines and deploy grid-enhancing technologies across nearly 21,000 miles of transmission infrastructure.
DOE estimates the combined projects could make more than 23 gigawatts of additional electricity capacity available.
NorthWestern Energy’s Montana-Wyoming project fits within that strategy by using advanced technologies to increase the capability of existing transmission infrastructure instead of relying on a new transmission corridor.
For the Montana-Wyoming system, the next stage will center on advancing the technology deployment and addressing the transmission constraints identified along the existing southeastern Montana corridor.
While the Montana-Wyoming project focuses on getting more capacity from existing transmission infrastructure, other projects are taking a larger approach to expanding regional power transfers. The Three Corners Connector, for example, would add a new 300-mile HVDC transmission link between Oklahoma and Colorado to strengthen connections between the eastern and western U.S. power grids.
Montana-Wyoming transmission corridor upgrade: Project factsheet
- Project: Montana-Wyoming transmission corridor upgrade
- Companies: NorthWestern Energy and Smart Wires
- Location: Southeastern Montana and the Montana-Wyoming transmission corridor
- Program: U.S. Department of Energy SPARK
- Technology: Smart Wires SmartValve advanced power-flow control and dynamic line rating
- Primary objective: Increase transfer capability between Montana and Wyoming
- Existing infrastructure: Yes
- New transmission line: Not required for the announced project
- Major substation expansion: Not required for the announced project
- Current status: Selected for grant funding and advancing toward deployment
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