[Note that there's no word about the developers paying for any of this. If you build a house, you have to pay for the connection that allows you to buy electricity, but if you build a wind farm you apparently don't have to pay for the connection that allows you to sell electricity. And this new transmission infrastructure has to be able to handle the full load of the generating facilities on it, even though wind plants rarely, if ever, reach that and average an output of only 20-25% capacity.]

This goal [to deliver 25% retail electric energy with wind power], however, is conditional on investment in transmission to support the growth. --Windbearings, Jennifer Delony

In December 2006, the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) adopted a rule pertaining to the establishment of competitive renewable energy zones (CREZs) The rule outlines procedures for both the PUCT to designate CREZs and the process of siting and constructing transmission to facilitate the delivery of electricity from renewable energy generation to consumers in Texas. ... The impetus for this rule comes from Texas Senate Bill (S.B. 20, which gives the PUCT authority to support development of transmission infrastructure in the state in order to meet Texas' renewable energy goal (S.B.) 20, which gives the PUCT authority to support development of transmission infrastructure in the state in order to meet Texas' renewable energy goal (i.e., 10,000 MW by 2025) and to coordinate construction of transmission facilities with construction of renewable energy generation facilities. --Texas Adopts CREZ Rule, Jennifer Delony

In addition, Maui Electric, which will buy the power [from Ulupalakua Ranch], expects to do interconnection and transmission work to handle the increased wind load. --Developers Accept The Island Challenge, Jeff Siegel

The realization of any wind power generation goal in the U.S. -- whether it is 20% by 2020 or a state-specific renewable portfolio standard -- depends on the development of a modern national transmission grid. ... The [Energy Policy Act of 2005] allows [the Federal Energy Regulation Commission] to issue permits when: a state does not have the authority to approve siting of facilities or to consider the interstate benefits that would result from new or updated facilities; the entity seeking to build or upgrade facilities is a utility that does not qualify to apply for siting approval in a state because the entity does not supply power for customers in that state; the state siting authority withholds approval for the facilities for more than one year after an application is filed or one year after the designation of a national corrridor; or the state establishes conditions for building or upgrading that will reduce benefits of the construction. --DOE Set To Designate National Corridors, Jennifer Delony

That means [Southern California Edison] has a lot of planning to do. Between now and 2013, the company will spend $2.85 billion on building a transmission collector delivery system to bring the electricity generated in the 50-square-mile [Tehachapi] area near the Mojave desert to customers in central, coastal and southern California. --SCE Secures 1,500 MW, Nora Caley

This study shows that the electric power system in the Minnesota region can reliably accommodate the addition of wind generation to supply 20% of Minnesota retail electric energy sales if sufficient transmission investments are made to support it. --The 2006 Minnesota Wind Integration Study, Ken Wolf, Matt Schuerger, Mark Ahlstrom, and Bob Zavadil