Construction
Overview
Construction of the Champlain Hudson Power Express® (CHPE) began on November 30, 2022, and all major construction work was completed in January 2026. CHPE is expected to enter service in late spring of 2026, with restoration activities along the project route continuing into the summer.
Construction Facts
The CHPE project uses safe, reliable, time-tested high-voltage direct current (HVDC) energy transmission cable technology that transmits power over long distances more efficiently than alternating current (AC) transmission.
CHPE HVDC cables were installed for ~339 miles underground and underwater from Lake Champlain at the U.S-Canada border to a converter station in Astoria, Queens. At the converter station, HVDC power will be converted to AC power so it can be injected into New York City's energy grid for local distribution.
Some key facts and figures about the project’s construction include:
- Approximately 339-mile HVDC line installed, including:
- 192+ miles of submarine cable in Lake Champlain and the Hudson and Harlem Rivers
- 146+ miles of underground cable, primarily in road and railway rights-of-way, that involved clearing trees and growth, digging trenches and installing the conduit to house CHPE’s cables, performing horizontal directional drilling to go under large obstacles and avoid environmentally sensitive areas, and pulling and splicing cables together
- State-of-the-art converter station built in Astoria, Queens
- First ever conversion of a fossil-fuel site into a grid-scale zero-emissions facility in New York
- 3.5 miles of new duct bank and cable installed in Queens to upgrade the New York City’s electric grid
- 1,400 union jobs created and more than 7 million hours worked
- $6 billion investment in New York State
Interactive Project Map*
*Data displayed in the map represents the most current information and was last updated 01/13/2026.
Construction Photos
Cable Offloading Spare terrestrial cable reels are offloaded for storage in November 2025. | Mattress Work The HOS Mystique laying protective mattresses in the Hudson River. | Post-Construction Restoration Route 22 restored and repaved following completion of underground CHPE cable installation. |
Converter Station An aerial shot of the nearly completed converter station in Astoria, Queens. | ARC Cable Splices Sections of the Astoria-Rainey Cable (ARC) successfully spliced together underground in Queens, NY. | Lake Champlain Installation CHPE crews finish laying the final stretch of cable in Lake Champlain to pull the cable into Putnam Station in August 2025. |
Congers Cable Pull-In Vessels are arranged in the Hudson River to successfully prepare to pull the cable from the river to land in Congers, NY. | Lake Champlain Cable Laying CHPE cable laying vessel prepares to pass under the Lake Champlain Bridge near Crown Point, NY in August 2025. | Astoria Converter Station The AC yard is assembled at the CHPE converter station in Astoria in August 2025. |
Want Further Technical Information?
Click here for more information on approved EM&CP filings and specific details for each portion of CHPE’s route.
Got Construction Questions?
Call: 1-800-991-CHPE (2473)
Email: publicoutreach@chpexpress.com
Send comments & questions via CHPE's Construction Comments and Questions Form
Page Last Updated: March 2026