Grain Belt Express, an Invenergy Transmission project, has selected Siemens Energy Inc. to supply the high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission technology for Phase 1 of the 800-mile project.
Grain Belt Express will deliver 100 percent domestic, clean, and affordable electricity to homes and businesses across four Midwest states—Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana—and other regions. At 5,000 megawatts of capacity, it is the highest-capacity line in development in the United States, connecting grid regions that serve 40 percent of American households. Phase 1 of the project is proposed to include an HVDC transmission line that extends approximately 530 miles between the converter stations in Kansas and Missouri.
Under a Preferred Supplier Agreement, Siemens Energy will support the final integrated design of the HVDC converter stations located in Ford County, Kansas, and Monroe County, Missouri. Grain Belt Express and Siemens Energy are also partners on the engineering, procurement, and construction of the HVDC converter stations. Invenergy Transmission has already secured land control for converter station parcels in Kanas and Missouri.
Construction of the HVDC converter stations will be a significant driver of local job creation. According to an economic impact report issued by Strategic Economic Research in December 2022, the Grain Belt Express transmission line and enabled renewable energy generation are expected to create 22,300 direct jobs during construction and represent $20 billion in combined new infrastructure investment.
“Grain Belt Express will serve as a regional reliability backbone by connecting multiple US grid regions and delivering electricity that Americans can count on,” said Shashank Sane, Executive Vice President and head of transmission at Invenergy. “This critical HVDC transmission line is necessary for reliability and resilience – especially given the more frequent and severe power disruptions, like the most recent bomb cyclone, Winter Storm Elliot and Winter Storm Uri in 2021. Our partnership with Siemens Energy, an industry leader in HVDC technology, is key to ensuring that this transmission project provides the reliability, resilience, and stability for millions of Americans, and is successfully completed on schedule.”
“A high-impact project like Grain Belt Express requires the most state-of-the-art technology,” said Tim Holt, member of the Executive Board of Siemens Energy. “We are pleased to collaborate with Invenergy Transmission on this transformative long-distance HVDC project and deliver the extensive benefits of our voltage-sourced converter technology.”
HVDC technology offers the most efficient means of transmitting large amounts of power over long distances and allows power to be precisely controlled to flow bidirectionally, an important feature for when emergency conditions require grid operators to rely on imported supply from other regions to meet power needs.
Grain Belt Express will be ready to start full construction on Phase 1 by the end of 2024, subject to regulatory reviews.
For more information visit www.grainbeltexpress.com
