Ameren Missouri is making plans to build a nearly 30-mile-long transmission line through Callaway and Montgomery Counties.
If approved by state utility regulators, the new transmission line would connect existing electrical substations in Callaway and Montgomery Counties to the multi-state Grain Belt Express, a power line carrying energy from Kansas to Indiana.
Ameren submitted a request to build, own and operate the proposed line to the Missouri Public Service Commission in November.
Samuel Gardner is the project manager with Ameren Transmission and said the new powerline is necessary due to increasing energy production across the Midwest.
The Grain Belt Express, to which the proposed Mid-Missouri powerline would connect, is the “biggest transmission line in U.S. history” and is expected to add 5 gigawatts of energy to the system, the equivalent to four nuclear power plants, according to the company.
“With the influx of energy in central Missouri, there's a need to basically transmit that energy so that's really what is driving the project,” Gardner said.
The Midcontinent Independent System Operator, or MISO, is the regional grid operator for northeast Missouri and 15 other states. The organization acts as a sort of air traffic controller for energy demand, supply and transmission among the utilities in its territory.
A study conducted by the grid operator revealed a need for “significant system upgrades in the region,” according to Ameren.
“We have to provide non-discriminatory access to the grid,” Gardner said. “When a generator wants to connect, we're federally obliged to work with them.”
The 30-mile route of the proposed transmission line has been identified and an interactive map of the proposed electric line can be found on Ameren’s website. Nearly 100% of the “preferred corridor” is parallel to existing Ameren right-of-way, according to the company.
“Our primary goal throughout the project will be to work with the local community and minimize landowner and agricultural impact,” the company website states. “We care about your property rights and want to be good neighbors in the communities we’ve served for more than 100 years.”
Ameren needs state approval before building the new transmission line. The Missouri Public Service Commission is expected to make a decision on the project next year. The company aims to build the powerline in 2029.
The public is able to give feedback to state regulators and the utility company.
Gardner said Invenergy, the company behind the much-challenged Grain Belt Express, is “paying for the vast majority of this upgrade.” The remaining cost will be paid by Ameren. As a regulated investor-owned utility, the company has the ability to recoup investments through rates paid by customers.
Invenergy would not confirm details on the project’s financing and denied participation in this report.
Gardner said Ameren Missouri held four local open houses about the project and incorporated feedback from landowners and community members in its application to state regulators.
