The $6 billion buried power line from Québec to New York City is running

June 2026 — The Champlain Hudson Power Express, a buried 339-mile line carrying Québec hydropower to New York City, entered commercial operation on May 13, 2026, after three years of construction and more than 15 years of development. Here's what happened, what it cost, and what went wrong.

Cost and outcome (as of June 16, 2026)

Outcome: commercial operation May 13, 2026. (NYSERDA)
Cost: $6 billion, privately funded. (CHPE)
Capacity: 1,250 MW, up to 20% of New York City's demand. (CHPE; NYSERDA)
Claimed savings: about $17.3 billion for ratepayers over 30 years, a TDI estimate. (CHPE)

Why New York wanted it

New York City uses nearly one-third of the state's electricity, but transmission limits kept it from reaching upstate renewables, leaving more than 90% of its power from fossil-fuel generators, NYSERDA says. The Public Service Commission created the Tier 4 program to fix that, and CHPE is its contract. (NYSERDA)

Buried, the line is less exposed to severe weather than overhead lines, with an expected life of 60 to 80 years. A $117 million environmental trust fund supports species research and restoration along Lake Champlain and the Hudson. (NYSERDA)

What was built

CHPE says the line includes 193 miles of submarine cable in Lake Champlain and the Hudson and Harlem rivers and 146 miles of underground cable, mainly in road and railroad rights of way, ending at a new converter station in Queens. (CHPE) NYSERDA lists more than 192 underwater and more than 147 terrestrial miles, plus more than 50 miles of horizontal directional drilling. (NYSERDA)

It is the longest fully buried transmission line in North America, both say. Construction began in November 2022. (CHPE; NYSERDA) A roughly 36-mile Hydro-Québec line links the Hertel substation in La Prairie, Québec, to CHPE at the border. (CHPE)

Hitachi Energy built the Astoria converter station, Kiewit led on-land construction, EJ Electric installed system upgrades and NKT supplied and laid the HVDC cable. (CHPE) The HVDC cables were made in the U.S. and Norway, NYSERDA says. (NYSERDA)

Who pays and how

NYSERDA doesn't buy CHPE's electricity. It buys Tier 4 renewable energy certificates, minted only after hourly-matched delivery into New York City's grid zone is verified. Its formula lowers program costs when Hydro-Québec's energy revenues rise, and New York City covers up to 40% of NYSERDA's costs. (NYSERDA)

TDI refinanced $4 billion of the construction loan with notes that closed June 11, 2026, rated A-/Baa1 by Fitch and Moody's, CHPE said. TDI also projects $1.4 billion in added local tax revenue over 25 years. (CHPE)

"With its completion, we are powering 1 million New York City homes with needed clean energy," said Gov. Kathy Hochul. (CHPE) NYSERDA projects about 37 million metric tons of carbon emissions avoided by 2040. (NYSERDA)

Ownership

"Kahnawà:ke is proud to open the door to First Nation co-ownership of major transmission infrastructure with Hydro-Québec," said Grand Chief Cody Diabo of the Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke. (CHPE) Hydro-Québec CEO Claudine Bouchard called delivering the fully underground, cross-border project "a true tour de force." (CHPE)

What went wrong

A slow start to selling. Hydro-Québec's contract took effect June 1, but because of temporary market restrictions it had been selling over CHPE "based primarily on market signals" for weeks, CHPE said. (CHPE)
Schedule claims differ. CHPE says it reached operation ahead of schedule; NYSERDA calls it on schedule. (CHPE; NYSERDA)
Work remains. Terrestrial restoration is expected to finish in fall 2026. (NYSERDA)
What we don't know yet: whether the $17.3 billion ratepayer saving, a developer estimate, materializes.

Our follow-up question for Transmission Developers

When were the market restrictions resolved, and how much energy has CHPE delivered under contract?

Sources

NYSERDA, “Tier 4 Program: Clean, Renewable Energy for New York City.” nyserda.ny.gov
Champlain Hudson Power Express, “The Champlain Hudson Power Express Marks Completion of a Landmark 1,250 MW Energy Infrastructure Project Connecting Québec to New York City,” June 16, 2026. chpexpress.com

Disclosure: [not in copy] Editor placeholder