Contractors will begin work next year on an $11-billion, 800-mile-long transmission line that will eventually span Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana and add 5,000 megawatts of delivery capacity.
The energy superhighway, dubbed the Grain Belt Express (GBX), is the biggest private-sector-led transmission project in U.S. history. Quanta Services and Kiewit Energy Group were recently awarded a $1.7-billion contract for the first phase of the project that will create 4,000 jobs.
The 600-kilovolt high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line will deliver power via the grid to the four states. It is expected to take three years to complete and be operational in 2029.
The latest HVDC technology will permit power to be precisely controlled to flow both eastward and westward. This is especially important when emergency conditions arise and require operators of the grid to rely on imported supply from other regions to meet power needs.
The project is critical to the American Midwest. Investment in the power grid hasn’t kept pace with growing energy demand and regions have been affected by reliability and affordability concerns. GBX will connect to the local utility or co-op serving homes and businesses in the four states.
As electricity demand increases due to data centers and manufacturing, the line will strengthen grid security and enhance reliability by enabling deliverability for new-build generation and over eight gigawatts of existing generation near the line’s connections with multiple regional grids.
Phase one of the project will connect Kansas and Missouri and create more than 4,000 jobs.
Invenergy, North America’s largest privately held renewable power generation and operations company, is building the line. The company develops, builds, owns and operates wind, solar and natural gas power generation and energy storage projects in the Americas, Europe and Asia.
“Critical energy infrastructure projects like Grain Belt Express represent a direct investment in America, our economy, and the domestic supply chain,” says Shashank Sane, Invenergy’s executive vice-president for transmission. “Our partnership with Prysmian only furthers our commitment to the U.S. manufacturing workforce, a stronger grid, and American energy independence.”
All four states have approved the line as a project in the public interest. More than $105 million in executed easement agreements are in effect, including $19 million already paid to landowners and an additional $86 million due at construction.
By unlocking market efficiencies, GBX will provide $52 billion in energy cost savings to Americans over a 15-year period.
Quanta and Kiewit will source raw materials locally in Kansas and Missouri when possible, including concrete, aggregate, civil materials, conduit and piping. Main construction, engineering and procurement offices for the first phase of GBX will be based out of Overland Park and Lenexa, Kansas.
The project is already resulting in supply chain investments and commercial commitments from many suppliers and manufacturers.
Prysmian North America has signed a supply-chain agreement with Invenergy for 12,500 miles of overhead conductors. The deal supports a 50,000-square-foot factory expansion nearing completion in Williamsport, Pa., that is set to double U.S. manufacturing capacity for certain conductors. Prysmian already supports more than 430 jobs across Pennsylvania and 270 at Williamsport.
Prysmian North America president and CEO Andrea Pirondini says the company – which is the largest cable solutions provider in the world – is proud to play a part in the transformative project.
Hubbell has signed an equipment supply and manufacturing deal for insulators and transmission assemblies that will support jobs at the company’s operations in Centralia, Mo., Leeds, Ala., and Aiken, S.C.
Meanwhile, Siemens Energy has signed a supply agreement for the HVDC transmission technology. Siemens will support the engineering, procurement, construction and final integrated design of HVDC converter stations in Kansas and Missouri during phase one of the project.
Missouri Public Utility Alliance has agreed to transmission service agreements to provide access to contractual energy cost savings for 39 Missouri municipal utilities.
“Grain Belt Express is an important project that supports the country’s energy dominance priority, manufacturing reshoring, mission to lead the world in artificial intelligence and secure our grid,” says Quanta Services president and CEO Duke Austin. “The entire Quanta team, including those at our Infrastructure Solutions Group in Kansas City, is ready and looks forward to helping modernize our electric infrastructure and bring much-needed relief to energy consumers across the Midwest.”
Kiewit Energy Group executive VP Chad Jessen says the company is pleased to be an integral part of the GBX project.
“Our extensive EPC experience with complex power delivery projects suits us well, especially using this HVDC technology to connect grid regions to help reliably meet growing energy demand.”
