The Transmission Lines Coming
Through Frederick County
Three separate high-voltage transmission projects are being routed through Frederick County. They are owned by different companies and carry different names, but they share one purpose: moving electricity from West Virginia power plants to the data centers of Loudoun County's "Data Center Alley." Most of the power does not stay here.
It's important for residents to understand that most of the power these lines would carry does not stay in Frederick County. It passes through on the way east to Loudoun. Frederick County absorbs the cleared land, the new easements, and the lost views, for power that serves another county's tax base.
| Valley North | MARL | Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type | 765 kV (highest-voltage AC line in the U.S.) | 500 kV | 500 kV |
| Owner | Valley Link Transmission Co. LLC (Dominion Energy, FirstEnergy Transmission, Transource/AEP) | NextEra Energy Transmission LLC | FirstEnergy / Potomac Edison |
| Length | ~260 miles total (~31 in Virginia) | ~107.5 miles | Continuation segment (Gore to Loudoun) |
| Route | Amos substation, Putnam County WV → Rocky Point substation, Frederick County MD | Dunkard Township, PA → Gore substation, Frederick County VA | Gore substation → Woodside substation → Loudoun (Goose Creek) |
| Frederick County impact | New 200-ft easement through Frederick and Clarke; route not yet chosen | New easements north of existing lines; ends at Gore | Rebuilds and expands corridor across Frederick into Clarke |
| Key new substation | Rocky Point (MD); Welton Springs (pass-through) | Woodside, Clear Brook (72 acres) | Uses same Woodside substation |
| VA SCC case | Not yet filed | PUR-2026-00018 (filed March 2026) | Application filed at VA SCC |
| Stage | Study area only; open houses underway | Route announced; SCC review | SCC review |
MARL and Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek are best understood as one line in two halves. It runs from the 502 Junction in Pennsylvania to the Goose Creek substation in Loudoun County. NextEra owns the northern half (MARL) and FirstEnergy owns the southern half (Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek). The two halves meet at the Gore substation in Frederick County.
Owner: Valley Link Transmission Company LLC, a consortium of Dominion Energy, FirstEnergy Transmission, and Transource Energy (an American Electric Power entity). Company president: Isaac Rhoades.
What it is
A new 765-kilovolt transmission line about 260 miles long. It is the highest-voltage AC line used in the United States and can carry roughly three times the power of a standard 500 kV line. It is proposed to run from the existing Amos substation in Putnam County, West Virginia, east through Frederick and Clarke counties in Virginia, and end at the proposed Rocky Point substation in Frederick County, Maryland. About 31 of those miles fall in Virginia.
Where it stands
Early. As of mid-2026, Valley Link has released only a study area (a band within which the line could go) rather than a chosen route. Both Frederick and Clarke counties sit inside that study area. The route will be selected after rounds of community "open houses" and then submitted to the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) for approval. No SCC case has been filed yet.
Open houses
- Frederick County: June 29, James Wood High School, 4:00–7:30 p.m.
- Clarke County: July 7, Clarke County Fairgrounds Ruritan Building (Berryville), 4:00–7:30 p.m.
- A second round will follow later in 2026 to refine the route.
What it requires
A new 200-foot-wide cleared easement along its full length. Trees and any structures inside that corridor are removed for the towers and conductors.
The proposal closely resembles the PATH (Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline) project, a similar 765 kV line proposed for this region and abandoned in 2012 after sustained public opposition.
Owner: NextEra Energy Transmission LLC.
What it is
A new 500-kilovolt line about 107.5 miles long, running from a substation in Dunkard Township, Pennsylvania (just over the West Virginia border near Morgantown), south through West Virginia and Maryland, and ending at the Gore substation in Frederick County, Virginia. NextEra describes it as bi-directional.
The Woodside substation
MARL is paired with a new 500/138 kV Woodside substation to be built in Clear Brook, in northeastern Frederick County. The site is roughly 72 acres, about a half-mile west of the existing Stonewall substation. Frederick County officials approved the Woodside substation in fall 2025. NextEra included Woodside in its SCC application "for context," but says the SCC is not the body that approves the substation; that approval is a local government decision.
A contested approval: The Frederick County community of Ridgeway Estates filed for an injunction to block the Woodside substation, arguing their subdivision's HOA covenants prohibit that level of development and were improperly waived to enable NextEra's land purchase. The case is active.
Where it stands
NextEra announced its proposed route in September 2025. The path is not entirely along existing transmission lines; portions run north of them, which requires buying new easements from landowners. NextEra filed its application for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity with the Virginia SCC in March 2026.
Owner: FirstEnergy, through its Potomac Edison subsidiary.
What it is
The southern continuation of the line MARL begins. It picks up where MARL ends at the Gore substation, runs through the new Woodside substation, crosses Frederick County into Clarke County, and then runs through northwestern Loudoun County to the Potomac. It delivers power to the Goose Creek substation in Loudoun's Data Center Alley.
What it requires
This segment largely rebuilds an existing 138 kV corridor rather than cutting an all-new route. It replaces existing structures with taller poles (around 185 feet) that carry a new 500 kV line, with the existing 138 kV line "underbuilt" beneath it. In places it also requires expanding the existing easement and taking new 200-foot easements to route around obstacles.
Where it stands
FirstEnergy held an open house in August 2025 and has filed its application with the Virginia SCC. Because it depends on the Woodside substation and on MARL delivering power to Gore, it is tied to the other two projects.
MARL (NextEra) and Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek (FirstEnergy) are two separately-owned segments of the same physical route. Power flows from Pennsylvania through MARL to the Gore substation in Frederick County, then continues south and east through the Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek segment to Loudoun's Data Center Alley. The Woodside substation in Clear Brook sits in the middle of this corridor.
Each project is reviewed separately by the SCC, but on the ground they stack into the same corridor. Through the Gore, Clear Brook, and Clarke County area, an existing 500 kV line and an existing 138 kV line would be joined by two new 500 kV lines (MARL and Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek) and one new 765 kV line (Valley North).
A transmission corridor does not stop at the wires. A NextEra representative compared the substations along these lines to interchanges along a highway. Interchanges attract development. A high-voltage corridor with substations tends to draw new development pressure onto nearby land, including more substations and the data centers these lines are built to serve.
The developers' claims
Grid reliability
PJM, the regional grid operator for 13 states, selected all three projects to meet rising electricity demand and prevent future reliability problems. Virginia's projected annual electricity demand growth rose from about 1.4% in 2020 to roughly 6.5% in 2025.
The demand driving that growth is data-center demand, concentrated in Loudoun. Data centers already consume more than a quarter of Virginia's electricity load. These lines are sized for and routed toward Loudoun's Data Center Alley. "Grid reliability" means reliability for data centers, paid for by all ratepayers.
Regional and local benefit
NextEra has argued the added capacity could give Frederick County access to lower-cost electricity and help attract industrial and advanced-manufacturing investment.
The promised economic benefit is uncertain. A wider grid corridor in Frederick could attract the same data-center development the county is fighting elsewhere. The farmland clearing and the loss of rural views are certain, and would happen regardless of whether the promised investment ever arrives.
What these projects actually cost
- PJM's regional transmission plan grew from roughly $920 million in 2021 to nearly $12 billion in 2025, with billions of that tied to these projects. Those costs are spread across ratepayers, including Frederick households, to serve private data-center load.
- All projects rely on easements. Where landowners will not sell voluntarily, utilities can pursue eminent domain. Across the broader Valley Link portfolio alone, opposition groups estimate thousands of acres of private property would be encumbered.
- Frederick County absorbs the cleared land and lost views for power that passes through to another county's tax base.
Who decides the lines
The Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) decides whether each transmission line is built and what route it takes. The Frederick County Board of Supervisors does not have that authority. The SCC process includes formal public comment and a public hearing. Individuals can intervene pro se (representing themselves, with no lawyer required) by creating an e-Filing account with the SCC and filing in the relevant docket.
Who decides the substations
Local government. Substations like Woodside require local land-use approval; this is where county officials have the most direct say. The Woodside approval is already being challenged in court by Ridgeway Estates.
What the Board of Supervisors can still do
Even though it cannot veto a line, a Board can:
- Pass a resolution of opposition. Several affected counties elsewhere have already done this for the southern Valley Link line.
- Coordinate with neighboring counties, including Clarke and others along the routes, to carry more weight before the SCC and FERC.
- Review and contest substation and interconnection approvals that do require local sign-off.
- Engage the FERC docket governing PJM's planning. Other affected counties have filed joint motions to intervene.
Routes, filings, and meeting dates all change. Before relying on any specific fact here, verify against the primary sources below.
- VA SCC case lookup: scc.virginia.gov → case information / docket search. Look up PUR-2026-00018 for MARL.
- Valley North: vltransmission.com/valley-north
- MARL: nexteraenergytransmission.com/midatlantic-resiliency-link
- Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek: FirstEnergy / Potomac Edison project page (search FirstEnergy Gore-Doubs)
- Woodside substation & Ridgeway Estates case: stopmarlvirginia.com
- Frederick County BOS and meeting portal: fcva.us/government/meeting-portal
Last verified: June 26, 2026. This page summarizes the situation as of that date. SCC proceedings move on their own schedule. Check the docket directly before taking any action based on case status or deadlines.
- [1]Valley Link Transmission, Joshua Falls to Yeat project page. ↗ vltransmission.com
- [2]Valley Link Transmission, homepage and project overview. ↗ vltransmission.com
- [3]Transource Energy, Valley Link portfolio. ↗ transourceenergy.com
- [4]NextEra Energy Transmission, Mid-Atlantic Resiliency Link overview. ↗ nexteraenergytransmission.com
- [5]NextEra Energy Transmission, MARL FAQ. ↗ nexteraenergytransmission.com
- [6]NextEra Energy Transmission, MARL project details. ↗ nexteraenergytransmission.com
- [7]Virginia State Corporation Commission, docket search. MARL: Case PUR-2026-00018. ↗ scc.virginia.gov
- [8]Loudoun County, VA, Transmission Lines in Loudoun County. ↗ loudoun.gov
- [9]Goochland County, VA, Valley Link Transmission Project. ↗ goochlandva.us
- [10]Town of Lovettsville, VA, Valley North Electrical Transmission Line Project. ↗ lovettsvilleva.gov
- [11]West Virginia Legislature, Joint Committee on Energy and Public Works interim report, Jan. 13, 2026. ↗ wvlegislature.gov
- [12]Winchester Star, "Proposed route announced for transmission line running through Frederick County," Sept. 2025. ↗ winchesterstar.com
- [13]Winchester Star, "Proposed transmission line would run through Frederick, Clarke," 2026. ↗ winchesterstar.com
- [14]Northern Virginia Daily, "Application filed in Virginia for MARL transmission line," March 2026. ↗ nvdaily.com
- [15]Northern Virginia Daily, "Proposed transmission line would run through Frederick, Clarke." ↗ nvdaily.com
- [16]Cardinal News, "Valley Link power transmission proposal meets a growing, organized resistance," March 2026. ↗ cardinalnews.org
- [17]Virginia Mercury, "Valley Link unveils reworked routes for high-voltage transmission line," May 2026. ↗ virginiamercury.com
- [18]Virginia Mercury, "Residents wrangle over transmission line proposal for rural Virginia," May 2026. ↗ virginiamercury.com
- [19]Charlottesville Tomorrow, "Valley Link seeks community input on proposed transmission line route through central Virginia," March 2026. ↗ cvilletomorrow.org
- [20]Piedmont Environmental Council, "An Electric Super-Highway Through the Piedmont." ↗ pecva.org
- [21]Stop MARL Virginia, FAQs. ↗ stopmarlvirginia.com
- [22]Stop MARL Virginia, home and Maryland pages. ↗ stopmarlvirginia.com