TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The Kansas Corporation Commission has approved a route for a Texas company’s proposed $7 billion high-voltage line that would funnel power from wind farms in southwest Kansas to out-of-state sites.
The KCC said in a release Thursday it’s approved Clean Line Energy’s route for the Grain Belt Express direct current line. In Kansas, the transmission line would run 370 miles from wind farms in Ford County to Missouri, across Illinois and into Indiana.
Houston-based Clean Line Energy still needs approval in Missouri and Illinois.
The proposed line has drawn objections from Kansas residents. Marshall County filed to intervene in its development, saying the project is a burden because it’s tax exempt for 10 years, residents can’t use the energy and the county would have to provide police and fire protection.
