National Grid Plans Eight 345kV Lines and 2-Mile Gas Pipeline for Micron's Clay Fabs

National Grid is building out the electric and gas infrastructure that will serve Micron Technology's semiconductor campus in the Town of Clay, including eight 345-kilovolt transmission lines, a 2-mile gas service pipeline and a substation expansion of about seven acres. The utility described the scope on October 5, 2026, as construction on the first two fabrication plants continues at White Pines Commerce Park, according to CNY Central.

The utility package is one of the less visible parts of the Micron program, but it is a substantial construction job in its own right. Much of it will be built underground, beneath a public road, railroad tracks and existing utility lines, which makes it a different kind of work from a conventional overhead transmission build.

What Happened

National Grid plans two 345kV transmission lines for each of Micron's four planned fabs, for a total of eight lines CNY Central. The utility will also construct a gas service pipeline about two miles long to reach the site CNY Central.

To feed those lines, National Grid will expand its existing substation by approximately seven acres CNY Central. The substation sits across the street from the Micron site, and the new infrastructure will cross Caughdenoy Road to reach the campus CNY Central. Power will travel through underground ducts beneath the road, and the substation expansion will support the first two plants initially, FingerLakes1.com reported.

A large share of the work will happen below grade, including under roads, railroad tracks and existing utility lines CNY Central.

National Grid is not disclosing the cost. Alberto Bianchetti, the utility's regional director of external affairs, told the station that project costs are kept private under company policy CNY Central. He described the Micron build in broad terms: "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," he said, comparing it to the Erie Canal in its importance for Central New York and Upstate New York CNY Central. On the location of the substation, he said that "the benefit of being right across the street is a value to them" CNY Central.

How the Schedule Lines Up With the Fabs

The utility work is paced to the fab construction sequence reported by CNY Central:

• Micron officially broke ground in January 2026.
• The first concrete for the first two fabs was poured in July 2026.
• Construction on the last two fabs is expected to begin in 2028.

Two lines per fab means the transmission scope can be released in step with each plant. The substation expansion now under way is sized to support the first two fabs at the start FingerLakes1.com. The station's report did not give completion dates for the lines or the gas pipeline.

Regulatory Background

The connection between the substation and the campus has been through state review. The New York State Public Service Commission approved National Grid's plan for a 2-mile underground 345-kilovolt transmission service line between the existing substation and the Micron campus, the Central New York Business Journal reported. That approval covered a proposal signed by National Grid, staff of the state Department of Public Service and the state Department of Environmental Conservation Central New York Business Journal.

The approval set conditions that will be familiar to anyone who has built linear utility work in New York. They address environmental management and construction plans, procedures for handling public complaints, measures to protect waterbodies and wildlife, and restoration after construction Central New York Business Journal.

PSC Chair Rory Christian framed the commission's role this way: "For a project as large and transformational as Micron's, every government agency involved must play its part to ensure its success" Central New York Business Journal. The same report cited projections of nearly 50,000 New York jobs over more than 20 years tied to the project, including 9,000 jobs at Micron, and noted that the current phase involves an expansion of the substation in eastern Clay Central New York Business Journal.

Readers who want the earlier history can find it in our prior coverage of the Micron groundbreaking and the project's environmental permits. This post covers the utility scope described this week, which those posts did not address.

Implications for Owners, Developers, Contractors and Subs

Utility and heavy civil contractors are looking at duct bank, trenching and crossing work under an active road, rail and existing utilities CNY Central. That kind of scope carries tight sequencing, utility locating and protection requirements, and restoration obligations that are written into the state approval Central New York Business Journal.

Electrical contractors and high-voltage specialists should note the repetition in the design: two 345kV lines per fab, four times over CNY Central. Repeated scope across phases rewards crews and suppliers that perform on the first pair, with the last two fabs not starting until 2028 CNY Central.

Industrial owners elsewhere in Upstate can take a practical lesson from the siting. Micron's campus is across the street from an existing substation, and the utility itself points to that proximity as a benefit CNY Central. Even so, serving the load requires a seven-acre substation expansion, eight extra-high-voltage lines and a new gas main CNY Central. Owners planning large loads should engage the utility early and expect the interconnection to be its own regulated project with its own approvals Central New York Business Journal.

Subcontractors and suppliers should not expect public pricing signals. The utility is keeping the cost private CNY Central, so scope definition will come through procurement documents and not through announcements.

What to Watch

• Completion of the seven-acre substation expansion that supports the first two fabs FingerLakes1.com.
• The start of work on the road crossing at Caughdenoy Road and the underground duct runs CNY Central.
• The gas pipeline schedule, which has not been published CNY Central.
• The 2028 start of the last two fabs, which sets the timing for the second half of the transmission scope CNY Central.

Bottom Line

The power and gas connections for Micron are now a defined construction program: eight 345kV lines, a 2-mile gas pipeline and a larger substation, with much of the work underground CNY Central. The state has already approved the underground transmission link and attached environmental and restoration conditions Central New York Business Journal. For contractors in Central and Western New York, the utility work is a parallel opportunity that will track the fab schedule through at least 2028.

Image credit: CNY Central. Image from the source article.

Sources

• CNY Central, National Grid ramps up power and gas links as Micron semiconductor fabs rise in Clay: https://cnycentral.com/news/local/national-grid-ramps-up-power-and-gas-links-as-micron-semiconductor-fabs-rise-in-clay-central-new-york-white-pines-commerce-park-utlities-bills-caughdenoy-road-electricity
• FingerLakes1.com, National Grid expands service for Micron site in Clay: https://www.fingerlakes1.com/2026/10/05/national-grid-expands-service-for-micron-site-in-clay/
• Central New York Business Journal, PSC approves National Grid plan for transmission line between substation and Micron campus in Clay: https://www.cnybj.com/psc-approves-national-grid-plan-for-transmission-line-between-substation-and-micron-campus-in-clay/