Trump Administration Scraps $4.9 Billion Loan for Grain Belt Express Line

The U.S. Department of Energy on 23 July terminated a $4.9 billion conditional loan guarantee for Invenergy’s Grain Belt Express, an 800-mile electricity transmission line designed to carry wind and solar power from Kansas to Midwestern and Eastern grids. The financing had been approved by the Loan Programs Office in the final weeks of the Biden administration. DOE said the project no longer met the conditions required for federal backing and was not deemed critical for the government to support. The decision follows sustained opposition from some Republican lawmakers and landowners who have challenged the line’s use of eminent-domain petitions. The cancellation marks a setback for Invenergy’s plan to create what it called a national "energy security backbone" linking four regional grids, including PJM Interconnection. The move also underscores the Trump administration’s skepticism toward large-scale renewable-energy infrastructure, even after the White House in May highlighted a $1.7 billion private investment in the project.