Grain Belt Express Awards $1.7B in Contracts for 800-mile Transmission Line Across Four States

Posted May 8, 2025

Quanta Services and Kiewit Energy Group have been awarded $1.7 billion in contracts for the Grain Belt Express project, an 800-mile transmission line across Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana.

The Grain Belt Express is a project developed by Invenergy, a power generation development and operations company based in Chicago. The 800-mile transmission line will use state-of-the-art high-voltage direct current (HVDC) technology and span across four states, including Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana, according to a release Wednesday.

The open-access transmission line will add 5,000 megawatts of U.S. energy delivery capacity and provide $52 billion in energy cost savings to Americans over 15 years.

The project will be completed in phases. Phase one of the Grain Belt Express will first connect Kansas and Missouri. The project is expected to begin construction in 2026 and will generate approximately 4,00 jobs in the area. Construction, engineering, and procurement offices for the first phase will be based in Overland Park and Lenexa.

“Grain Belt Express is a multi-billion-dollar investment in Kansas and an essential American infrastructure project,” Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson said in the release. “The selection of contractors and suppliers with a local presence is just one of the many sizable economic benefits Grain Belt Express brings, in addition to greater energy cost savings and reliability.”

Invenergy has completed 1,500 easement agreements, according to the release. Over $105 million in agreements have been executed at this time, including $19 million paid to landowners and $86 million for construction. Over 95% of Grain Belt Express phase one main line land acquisition is complete.