As of October 16, 2025, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ordered the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) to specify when and how merchant high-voltage (HVDC) direct-current transmission projects will be integrated into its transmission models. [1] The decision, ruled 3-0, was in response to a complaint by Invenergy Transmission in 2022. The issue centered on MISO’s management of Invenergy’s planned Grain Belt Express project. The 5-GW, 600-kV project, which is set to run approximately 800 miles between Kansas and Indiana, is moving forward despite the US Department of Energy’s cancellation of a $4.9 billion conditional loan commitment. Invenergy complained that MISO failed to account for the project in its transmission planning process, creating duplicative projects. FERC gave MISO 90 days to specify when and how merchant transmission projects will be incorporated into its transmission planning processes. FERC rejected parts of Invenergy’s complaint, including the company’s request that the Grain Belt line be included in MISO’s long-range transmission plan’s base cases, Tranche 1 or Tranche 2.1.
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