This grant supports a study examining whether the upgrading of existing electricity transmission lines can obviate the need to build new transmission infrastructure corridors. Under the leadership of Principal Investigator Granger Morgan, the research team will study different transmission line upgrading options, including re-engineering existing transmission lines to improve their carrying capacity or switching from high-voltage alternating current (HVAC) lines to high-voltage direct current (HVDC) lines. Data will be collected from state public utility commissions about proposed or planned transmission line upgrades. This information will then be analyzed using an engineering model of the transmission system to understand which transmission line corridors might be best suited to upgrading or current conversion based on their technical and economic specifications.