News

Missouri’s Attorney General to investigate Grain Belt Express

Missouri’s Attorney General says he is starting an investigation of the Grain Belt Express.

The Grain Belt Express project would construct transmission lines across Missouri to transport wind-generated energy from Kansas to Indiana.

Andrew Bailey tells Brownfield the investigation is happening to protect Missouri consumers and agriculture.

“The Grain Belt Express was sold off as a Green New Deal program based on certain assumptions, funding levels, job creation, the ability to supply power to Missouri that would reduce costs for Missourians and they’ve delivered on none of those promises.”

He says the project has more than 40 lawsuits pending for land access.

“When you’ve got to file more than 40 lawsuits to take farmer’s land away from them to complete their project, one wonders why we needed the project in the first place.”

At the end of June, Bailey issued a Civil Investigative Demand, a pre-litigation tool similar to a subpoena, to Invenergy Transmission, LLC, demanding they produce the documents that back economic claims.

Bailey says he’s expecting some of the documents soon and the Missouri AG office will review those over the next two months.

“We’ll review and analyze those documents to determine what next steps need to be taken as far as a follow-up investigation or potentially a lawsuit.”

Bailey also wrote a letter to Missouri’s Public Utilities Commission asking them to re-evaluate the recent Certificate of Convenience and Necessity previously granted to the Grain Belt Express.

Missouri Farm Bureau President Garrett Hawkins says he’s grateful Attorney General Bailey continues to ask tough questions and hold Invenergy accountable on all affected landowners and Missourians.

Read the letter to the PUC and the Civil Investigative Demand.