The Canada Energy Regulator (CER) has approved the 1,200 MW Appalaches-Maine Interconnection Line project between Canada and the United States, which now has all the permits needed for construction in Canada. The US$1bn project is developed by Hydro Québec in collaboration with Central Maine Power, an affiliate of Avangrid, and the line will stretch over 103 km in Québec, from the Appalaches substation in Saint-Adrien-d’Irlande (near Thetford Mines) to a connection point in the municipality of Frontenac in Estrie on the Québec–Maine border. The project will link to the future New England Clean Energy Connect (NECEC) transmission line, whose construction began in February 2021. Commissioning of the power line is scheduled in 2023. Hydro Québec will supply 9.45 TWh/year of hydropower to Massachusetts (US) for 20 years. In addition, the company will also provide 0.5 TWh/year to Maine (US) for 20 years.
In the United States, the US Army Corps of Engineers issued the federal environmental permit for the project in November 2020, clearing the way for the launch of construction work in Maine.