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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 11 (Friday, January 17, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5870-5872]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-00736]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

[Docket No. DOE-HQ-2023-0020]

Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement for Phase 1 of the Grain Belt Express Transmission Line 
Project (DOE/EIS-0554)

AGENCY: Loan Programs Office, Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of availability, request for comments, notice of 
proposed floodplain action.

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SUMMARY: The Loan Programs Office (LPO), U.S. Department of Energy 
(DOE), announces the availability of the draft environmental impact 
statement (DEIS) for the proposed Phase 1 of the Grain Belt Express 
Transmission Project (Project), and a Notice of Proposed Floodplain 
Action. The DEIS analyzes the impacts associated with providing 
potential financial assistance (a Federal loan guarantee) to Grain Belt 
Express, LLC, for construction and energization of the Project. This 
notice of availability (NOA) announces the start of the public review 
and comment period, as well as the dates and times for public meetings 
on the DEIS. After DOE LPO holds the public meetings and addresses 
public comments submitted during the review period, DOE LPO will 
publish a final environmental impact statement. Because the Project may 
include activities within floodplains, this NOA also serves as a notice 
of proposed floodplain action.

DATES: Comments must be received no later than March 3, 2025. LPO will 
hold six public meetings for the Project, four in-person and two 
virtual, at the following dates and times (Central Time):
     Monday, February 10, 2025, 4-6 p.m., Dodge City Public 
Library, 1001 N 2nd Ave., Dodge City, KS 67801.
     Tuesday, February 11, 2025, 4-6 p.m., Holiday Inn Express, 
2175 Lincoln St., Concordia, KS 66901.
     Wednesday, February 12, 2025, 4-6 p.m. St. Joseph Museum, 
Jackie Lewin Conference Roon, 3406 Frederick Ave., St. Joseph, MO 
64506.
     Thursday, February 13, 2025, 4-6 p.m., La Bella Casa Event 
Center, 5 South Main St., Carrollton, MO 64633.
     Virtual, Wednesday, February 19, 2025, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
     Virtual, Wednesday, February 20, 2025, 4-6 p.m.
    All meetings are open to the public and free to attend. 
Registration for in person meetings is not required. Registration for 
the virtual public meetings is required and may be completed at https://www.energy.gov/lpo/eis-0554-grain-belt-express-transmission-line. 
Meeting information will be sent to registrants via their email address 
provided during registration.

ADDRESSES: The DEIS and detailed information about the Project can be 
found on DOE LPO's website at: https://www.energy.gov/lpo/eis-0554-grain-belt-express-transmission-line. Comments can be submitted in any 
of the following ways:
    Online via DOE LPO's website at https://www.energy.gov/lpo/eis-0554-grain-belt-express-transmission-line or email: 
[email protected].
    Orally or in writing during any of the public meetings identified 
in this NOA.
    In writing submitted by mail or any other delivery service, 
enclosed in an envelope labeled ``Grain Belt Express EIS'' and 
addressed to Todd Stribley, NEPA Compliance Officer, U.S. Department of 
Energy, Loan Programs Office--LP30, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, 
Washington, DC 20585.
    Through the regulations.gov web portal: Navigate to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket No. DOE-HQ-2023-0020. Click 
on the ``Comment'' button below the document link. Enter your 
information and comment, then click ``Submit Comment.''
    For more information about submitting comments, please see 
``Information on Submitting Comments'' under the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION heading below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Todd Stribley, U.S. Department of 
Energy, Loan Programs Office, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, 
DC 20585. Email: [email protected]. Phone: 301-525-5944.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Grain Belt Express LLC (the ``Applicant''), applied for Federal 
financial assistance via a loan guarantee from the DOE LPO under title 
XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S. Code [U.S.C.] 16511-
16517), as amended. Section 1703 of title XVII (the Clean Energy 
Financing Program) defines eligible projects as those that, ``avoid, 
reduce, or sequester air pollutants or anthropogenic emissions of 
greenhouse gases; and employ new or significantly improved technologies 
as compared to commercial technologies in service in the United States 
at the time the guarantee is issued'' (Pub. L. 109-58, sec. 1703(a)). 
Because the Project may include activities within floodplains, this NOA 
also serves as a notice of proposed floodplain action, in accordance 
with 10 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part 1022.
    Proposed Action. The Federal financing provided by DOE LPO will 
apply to eligible project costs that include the design, engineering, 
financing, construction, startup, commissioning, and shakedown of the 
Project, which includes the following elements:
     A 542-mile, overhead 600-kilovolt (kV) high-voltage 
direct-current (HVDC) transmission line that would extend between Ford 
County in southwestern

[[Page 5871]]

Kansas and Monroe County in northeastern Missouri (HVDC Line);
     The Tiger Connector, an approximately 36-mile, overhead 
345-kV alternating-current (AC) transmission line that would extend 
from the HVDC converter station in Monroe County, Missouri, to the 
existing McCredie Substation, owned and operated by Associated Electric 
Cooperative Incorporated, and the existing Burns Substation, owned and 
operated by Ameren, in Callaway County, Missouri;
     The Ford County Interconnect, an approximately 0.2-mile, 
overhead 345-kV AC transmission line located in Ford County, Kansas 
that would extend from the HVDC converter station to the existing 
Saddle Substation, owned and operated by ITC Great Plains;
     Two HVDC converter stations and associated infrastructure, 
one located in Ford County, Kansas and one located in Monroe County, 
Missouri;
     Optical regeneration facilities in support of the HVDC 
Line and associated access driveways; and
     Temporary workspaces needed for construction, including 
temporary access routes, workspaces around transmission structures, 
pull or tension sites, multi-use construction yards, concrete batch 
plants, and fly yards and helipads.
    No Action Alternative. Under the No Action Alternative, DOE LPO 
would not provide Federal financial support (a loan guarantee) to the 
Applicant, with the assumption for the purpose of the environmental 
analysis that the project would not be constructed.
    Availability of the DEIS: The DEIS and associated information are 
available on DOE LPO's website at: https://www.energy.gov/lpo/eis-0554-grain-belt-express-transmission-line. If you require a digital copy on 
a flash drive or paper copy, LPO will provide one upon request, if 
supplies are available. You may request a flash drive or paper copy of 
the DEIS by contacting DOE LPO at [email protected]. Hard 
copies of the DEIS are available for review at the following libraries:
     Dodge City Public Library, 1001 N 2nd Ave, Dodge City, KS 
67801
     Southwest Kansas Library System, 100 Military Ave Suite 
210, Dodge City, KS 67801
     Frank Carlson Library, 702 Broadway, Concordia, KS 66901
     Learning Resource Center, 2221 Campus Dr., Concordia, KS 
66901
     Great Bend Public Library, 1409 Williams St., Great Bend, 
KS 67530
     Hays Public Library 1205 Main St., Hays, KS 67601
     Manhattan Public Library, 629 Poyntz Ave., Manhattan, KS 
66502
     Kansas City Public Library, 6242 Swope Pkwy, Kansas City, 
MO 64130
     Mid-Continent Woodneath, 8900 NE Flintlock Rd., Kansas 
City, MO 64157
     Little Dixie Regional Library, 111 N. 4th St., Moberly, MO 
65270
     Little Dixie Regional Library, 102 E Library St., 
Huntsville, MO 65259
     St. Joseph Public Library, 927 Felix Street, St., Joseph, 
MO 64501
     East Hills Library, 502 N Woodbine Rd., St., Joseph, MO 
64506
     Carnegie Branch Library, 316 Massachusetts St., St. 
Joseph, MO 64504
     Carrollton Public Library, 1 North Folger St., Carrollton, 
MO 64633
     Trails Regional Library, 203 E Kelling Ave., Waverly, MO 
64096
    Cooperating Agencies: The following 4 Federal agencies participated 
as cooperating agencies in the preparation of the DEIS: U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, National Park Service, 
and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The Advisory Council on 
Historic Preservation was a participating agency.
    Information on Submitting Comments: LPO requests data, comments, 
information, analysis, or suggestions relevant to the environmental 
analysis in the DEIS from the public; affected Federal, tribal, state, 
and local governments, agencies and offices; the scientific community; 
industry; or any other interested party. DOE LPO does not consider 
anonymous comments. To promote informed decision-making, comments 
should be as specific as possible and should provide as much detail as 
necessary to meaningfully and fully inform DOE LPO on why the issues 
raised are important to the consideration of potential environmental 
effects and/or the alternatives to the proposed action.
    Please include your name and address as part of your comment. DOE 
LPO makes your comments, including your name and address, available for 
public review. You may request that DOE LPO withhold your name, 
address, or any other personally identifiable information (PII) 
included in your comment from the public record; however, DOE LPO 
cannot guarantee that it will be able to do so. If you wish your name, 
address, or other PII to be withheld, you must state your request 
prominently in a cover letter and explain the harm that you fear from 
its disclosure, such as unwarranted privacy invasion, embarrassment, or 
injury. Even if LPO withholds your information in the context of this 
notice, your comment is subject to the Freedom of Information Act 
(FOIA) and any relevant court orders. If your comment is requested 
under FOIA or relevant court order, your information will only be 
withheld if a determination is made that one of the FOIA exemptions to 
disclosure applies or if the relevant court order is challenged. Such a 
determination will be made in accordance with DOE's FOIA regulations 
and applicable law.
    Please label privileged or confidential information as ``Contains 
Confidential Information,'' and consider submitting such information as 
a separate attachment. Information that is not labeled as privileged or 
confidential may be regarded by DOE LPO as suitable for public release. 
Consistent with Section 304 of the National Historic Preservation Act 
(NHPA) (54 U.S.C. 307103(a)), DOE LPO is required to withhold the 
location, character, or ownership of historic resources if it 
determines that disclosure may, among other things, risk harm to the 
historic resources or impede the use of a traditional religious site by 
practitioners. Tribal entities should designate information that falls 
under Section 304 of NHPA as confidential.
    All submissions from organizations or businesses and from 
individuals identifying themselves as representatives or officials of 
organizations or businesses will be made available for public 
inspection in their entirety.
    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 4231 et seq. (National Environmental Policy 
Act, as amended) and 40 CFR 1501.9 and 1503.1.

Signing Authority

    This document of the Department of Energy was signed on January 8, 
2025, by Todd Stribley, NEPA Compliance Officer, Loan Programs Office, 
pursuant to delegated authority from the Secretary of Energy. That 
document with the original signature and date is maintained by DOE. For 
administrative purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of 
the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DOE Federal 
Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit the 
document in electronic format for publication as an official document 
of DOE. This administrative process in no way alters the legal effect 
of this document upon publication in the Federal Register.

[[Page 5872]]

    Signed in Washington, DC, on January 10, 2025.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2025-00736 Filed 1-16-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
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