Energy Department terminates loan for Grain Belt Express

Department of Energy 180x720.jpg

The Department of Energy has scrapped a nearly $5 billion loan program for the Grain Belt Express, a nearly 600-mile-long electric line for wind & solar projects out of the Midwest.

The Department says it was a project “rushed out the door” in the final days of the Biden Administration. It also says the conditions necessary to issue the $4.9 billion loan are unlikely to be met, and it is not critical for the federal government to play a role in the project.

The Grain Belt Express was intended to connect wind and solar facilities across Kansas and Missouri. Senator Josh Hawley previously said the 600-mile project would put farmers in danger of losing land.

Related Stories
API said it stands ready to work with Congress to develop a balanced approach to E15 legislation that promotes fuel choice, supports investment certainty, and contributes to a stable and fair marketplace for American consumers.
In the meantime, Senate Majority Leader John Thune is asking that farmers be allowed to use marketing assistance loans to help stay afloat.
Beef industry groups seem to agree — market-based pricing, not federal intervention, best supports rancher livelihoods and long-term beef supply stability.
Harvest Pace, Logistics, and Input Costs Drive Fall Decisions
Bioethanol is becoming a global standard. For growers, that boom comes as drops in Mississippi River levels and in soybean demand occur in tandem, leaving barge space for corn and wheat.
The government shutdown has touched nearly every sector of the ag industry since it began, and now impacts are spilling over into dairy.

LATEST STORIES BY THIS AUTHOR:

David Klein with the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers (ASFMRA) shares an end-of-harvest update and a peek at the farmland market in Central Illinois.
Host of RealAg Radio Shaun Haney discusses how the proposed reductions to agriculture programs in Canada’s new budget could affect research and support programs that farmers need.
Highly Pathogenic Avian Flu (HPAI) cases are rising. In the last week, seven commercial turkey, duck, and egg layer flocks were culled across five Midwest states and California.
A SCOTUS ruling on Trump’s tariffs could have long-term implications on the authority of future administrations to control U.S. trade policy, according to RFD-TV legal expert Roger McEowen.
The Sheinbaum–Rollins meeting signals progress, but the focus remains on fully containing screwworm before cross-border movement resumes.