Energy Department ends Biden-awarded loan for huge Midwest power line
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Sen. Josh Hawley earlier this month. Photo: Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images
The Energy Department on Wednesday terminated a conditional $4.9 billion loan guarantee for a giant Midwest power line that conservatives criticized as a green energy project.
Why it matters: The DOE's move on the Grain Belt Express throws up a substantial roadblock for the project and marks another Trump administration effort to undo its predecessor's actions on energy.
- The Energy Department's loan office that backs low-emissions technology announced the loan guarantee in late November after Donald Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris.
Driving the news: "After a thorough review of the project's financials, DOE found that the conditions necessary to issue the guarantee are unlikely to be met and it is not critical for the federal government to have a role in supporting this project," the department said in a statement.
- Invenergy, the company behind the Kansas-to-Indiana project, has touted the Grain Belt Express' ability to "unlock access to one of the strongest combined wind and solar energy resources in the United States."
Zoom in: Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) had said on X this month that he secured a pledge from Energy Secretary Chris Wright that he would be "putting a stop to the Grain Belt Express green scam."
- "This is a HUGE win for Missouri landowners and taxpayers who should not have to fund these green energy scams," Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey said on X.
- Missouri GOP officials also have argued that the Grain Belt Express runs against the interests of farmers and other landowners and criticized the use of eminent domain.
The other side: "While we are disappointed about the LPO loan guarantee, a privately financed Grain Belt Express transmission superhighway will advance President Trump's agenda of American energy and technology dominance while delivering billions of dollars in energy cost savings, strengthening grid reliability and resiliency, and creating thousands of American jobs," a project spokesman said.
Context: Invenergy will seek to connect a gas-fired power plant it's developing to the line, a source close to the company exclusively told Axios earlier this week.
- Invenergy is also in active discussion with a company to bring existing coal-fired generation onto the proposed Grain Belt Express project, according to the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
- Such fossil fuel-based connections could change how the line is perceived.
Ben Geman contributed reporting.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with comment from Invenergy.
