An independent company which owns and/or maintains energy transmission facilities; or more correctly, a theoretical company which, if it existed, would engage in this activity.

Deregulation of the energy industry has resulted in a sharp division between various facets of the energy production and supply chain, and management of transmission systems is considered a separate service under deregulation. No TRANSCOs had emerged in the US by the turn of the century, but this situation is expected to change over time as industry deregulation begins to have greater effect on the energy market. In the energy industry, the high-voltage energy corridors that carry large volumes of energy to towns, cities and industries are referred to as the transmission system; municipal and regional systems that directly serve residential and commercial customers are referred to as distribution companies, and distribution is considered a distinctly different service from transmission.

A TRANSCO's duties would likely include construction and maintenance of energy corridors and transmission towers, coordination of transmission to wholesale customers (industries, utilities, co-ops, etc.), management of the energy grid in the regions in which they operate, and perhaps significant involvement in the wholesale energy market. At this time, many of a TRANSCO's eventual functions are performed by an entity known as an independent system operator.

TRANSCOs will likely be required to operate under fairly tight governmental supervision due to the importance of the national energy grid to the country's economy.

May also be spelled Transco, TransCo, or transco.

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