By Brian Martchi, Minnesota
Since Washington Republicans’ renewable energy and attacks on unmanageable data centers are threatening to push electricity prices over electricity demand, the Utility Commission in five red states is fighting widespread efforts to maintain electricity bills.
He has lodged a complaint from Federal Energy Regulators to prevent the development of $ 22 billion proposed high voltage electric transmission lines, which will expand an existing network spread from Kentucky to Minnesota and Dacotas. He says the upper midwest’s central power grid operator has dramatically promoted financial and environmental qualities of the lines, while their construction costs have been wrongly allocated to the states which they do not need.
On the other hand, electricity utility, tech companies, agricultural businesses, environmental groups, a Republican governor and a couple of 2028 are a motion for the potential 2028 Democratic presidential contenders who support this investment.
It is expected that new lines will be in the service by 2034, with a sharp, links between the plains and population centers in the south and east.
Fighting on transmission lines highlights a key flashpoint in the energy sphere, as cheap renewable energy moves forward due to transmission capacity and lack of political enmity from Republican states.
In a letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on September 16, Government Tim Walls, who is contesting for the third term, said in a letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on September 16, “This improvement will save consumers billions, which are running for the third term,” which is running on September 16. And will save billions by diversifying the breeding market throughout the region. “
Michigan’s Government Greenchin Whiter and Illinois Government JB Pratzkar gave similar arguments in the letters earlier this month. Like Minnesota, Michigan and Illinois have a legal mandate for 100 % carbon -free electricity for Michigan and Illinois by 2040. Both governors are 2028 presidential candidates.
On September 5, Kim Reynolds, the Government of the air -rich and mandate Free Iowa, also withdrew the complaint of five utility commissions, supporting President Trump, who investigated his state’s “all energy strategies” and named name.
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He wrote, “The new infrastructure will ensure the constant relief and flexibility of the electric grid throughout the region but also throughout the region.” He added that by killing the new transmission investment, the new power plants worth seven nuclear reactors in his state could be “from months to years”.
Minnesota operates electric grid and operates electric grid in 14 other states, emphasizing the non-profit lines based in Indiana-which is collectively known as LRTP Tranch 2.1-can pay more than three times for himself.
It is higher than the Enough enough to enable them as “multi-value projects”, which can spread widely in the mid-Canawa independent system operator area-known as MISO-which includes rates in Republican control states without a rate of decorative decoration. A Masu spokesperson had enough opportunity to weigh the stakeholders of the region on the proposed posts Corrective.
Masu spokesman Brandon Morris said in an email last year, before finalizing the train, Masu “led the process with a mutual cooperation that included a stakeholder’s considerable engagement, as well as more than 300 meetings and opinions related to solving and benefits.”
Representing the public utility commissions of Montana, North Dakota, Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas, the complainants argued that the cost was allocated and effectively subsidized the development of solar farms from population centers. Instead of asking Montana and North Dakota to share the burden, he said that states like Minnesota, Michigan and Illinois should build more clean energy and transmission in their borders.
North Dakota’s GOP Congress delegation said in a letter on September 11, urging regulators to provide a complaint and revoke the cost of the cost allocated framework.
“The current approach to allocating cost is a subsidy scheme that eliminates some states of their most aggressive energy policies… while paying out the cost of paying out of the state,” US Representative Julie Fedovich and Sense. Kevin Karmer and John Hoiwin wrote.
By eliminating the complaint, Minnesota is making plenty of clean energy on domestic soil. According to Minnesota, a clean energy economy, renewable sources provided 33 % of the state’s electricity electricity in 2024, and a state law that accelerated the permission of solar and other energy infrastructure in July. Since then, solar projects approved by the Minnesota Public Utility Commission will provide almost the valuable energy of a nuclear reactor as they come online in the next few years.
But regardless of how it is ready, experts say high voltage transmission is needed to transmit electricity for long distances.
“One of the key concepts of a renewable source -based system is that you are larger than the grid weather,” said Mike Shuletter, a clean energy -free energy -free energy -based free energy -based free energy -free energy -free energy -free energy -free energy -free energy -free energy -free energy -free -free energy -based Mike Showletter.
Transmission lines for coal -fired electricity from North Dakota to Minnesota now catch plenty of air, which provides more than one -third of North Dakota’s electricity. North Dakota officials said during the process of joining the Masu stakeholders – before the Utility Commissioner’s July complaint – that they would like to see anything more.
“In the east of the Rocks, the power usually rises from the west to the east, but the flow often changes during winter storms and other extreme events of the weather,” said Shaulter. To ensure that everyone has considerable power in the circumstances, utility can either make a lot of transmission and some power plants or many power plants and some transmission.
“The latter is much more expensive,” said Shuvalter.
Shawlatter said that the construction of many new gas-powered power plants-which comes more and more AI data centers online is likely to be already likely-natural gas prices can increase. Since the gas plant often sets the local cost of electricity, and fuel represents a significant portion of their operating costs, it means expensive power.
“The world whose complaints are imagined is more expensive electricity, and our AI industry is in danger,” he said. “We’re shooting ourselves in the foot.”
Miso agrees.
The grid operator said in September 9, “This complaint jeopardizes the capacity of MISO and its state partners to support the expected growth in power demand and will increase the cost to consumers within the MISO region.”
Shuvalter said that a blow to Tranch 2.1 would mess up with a critical process of planning and delay the arrival of new power plants that were counting, utility and large consumers.
Ironically, these delays can slow down the deployment of gas plants, which aims to strengthen the grid as AI data centers multiply.
The Tech Industry Trade Group, the Data Center Alliance, presented this point in the filing on September 9.
Although Shawlatter said that Masu had allocated less than 2 % of the total TRANT 2.1 expenditures to North Dakota and Montana, the complaints of the commissions have no meaning: they do not want to pay at all for the investment they believe they benefit others.
The triggers of the other three commissions are less clear as the Federal Energy Regulators have prevented MISO from allocating 2.1 costs in their southern region.
Louisiana Public Service Commission’s Colbby Cook said Corrective That the LPSC has always supported the “MISO regional transmission planning process” but has joined the complaint for two important reasons.
Kick said in an email, first of all, “these projects were relied upon to justify these projects (multi -value projects).” Apart from the benefits of decoration, the complaint objected to the estimation of the matter to the extent that the new high voltage lines could be constructed effectively and to the extent that they would improve the reliability of the grid and reduce the need for new power plants.
Secondly, Louisiana – though not currently needed to pay new expenses – may be on the hook later.
Legal representatives of the other four commissions did not respond to one Corrective Apply for a comment.
Perhaps acknowledging the need for a sharp solution, the complainants have asked federal regulators to speed up the complaint. It is unclear whether the feeds will be pleased.
In the meantime, an important piece of Midwest’s future power grid is in Lambo.
“If the complainant is successful, the Masu will have to do at least one year’s worth of work,” said Shaulter.
Minnesota is a part of the reformist state’s newsroom, a non -profit news network that has helped the Grant and Donors coalition support 501C (3) as a public charity. The Minnesota Reformer maintains editorial freedom. Contact Editor J. Patrick Kolcan for questions: [email protected].
