One such project, to build a 200 kilometre transmission line in the rural area of western North Dakota, United States, was first publicised in 2011 and has only just been approved.

In 2013, the Killdeer Mountain Alliance expressed concern about the line being too close to the historic Killdeer Mountain Battlefield, Bismarck Tribune explains.

The 345 kV line has now been included in a U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Utilities Service and U.S. Forest Service records of decision, with Western Area Power Administration and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers set to make a decision soon.

In addition to the line, two substations will be constructed and three further substations will be upgraded.

“The approval of this line is a significant step forward in serving the tremendous growth in the Williston Basin and beyond,” said Paul Sukut, the CEO of Basin Electric Power Cooperative, the company behind the construction.

It is hoped the project will be completed by 2017.