Power on Midwest outlines proposed 765 kV transmission line, schedules local open houses

Power on Midwest representatives on May 12 presented updated routing and permitting plans for a proposed 765 kilovolt transmission line and urged landowners to review online maps and attend upcoming open houses.

"We're here to continue the conversation on Power on Midwest," said Tim Rogers, a presenter representing the project team, noting the filing underway for a certificate of need and parallel route permitting steps. Anna, the project's community relations manager, said the team will post an economic impact study and detailed maps at poweronmidwest.com.

The presenters said the project team includes Great River Energy, ITC and Xcel Energy and that regional planning by MISO projects a 1–2% compounded growth in demand over 20 years (roughly 25% total) that the transmission line would help accommodate. Rogers said the 765 kV design was chosen because it can carry substantially more capacity than multiple 345 kV lines while using less right-of-way.

Project timeline and public process were a major focus. Rogers said public comment on the certificate of need portion of the docket would close around May 20 and that the team expects to file route permit applications next year, with Public Utilities Commission decisions anticipated in 2028 for affected dockets. He described a sequence of route permit filings for different segments (for example Brookings to Lakefield Junction and Lakefield Junction to Pleasant Valley) and said landowners can zoom in on preliminary alignments online and print property maps for the June open houses.

The presenters listed benefits they say the project would provide: improved grid resilience, access for more renewable generation, and local economic activity from construction-related jobs. "It's meant to be a very resilient and reliable transmission system," Rogers said, adding the team contracted an independent firm to quantify jobs, labor income and local tax impacts; that report will be posted on the project website.

Commissioners and attendees asked technical and procedural questions. One commissioner asked whether the applicant must propose multiple routes; Rogers answered that the new routing rules call for one initial route in the application but that scoping and public input may bring alternative alignments into consideration. When a commissioner asked whether the project is eminent-domain eligible, a presenter replied, "Yes, this is," and added that condemnation would be a last resort after good‑faith negotiation with landowners.

Presenters said the team is engaging tribal entities and performing visual simulations and field reviews; they also noted South Dakota permit filings are already further advanced in some segments and that permitting practices differ by state. The team encouraged affected landowners to attend the local open houses (early June dates noted in the presentation) and to comment specifically on alignments near their properties via the online mapping tool.

The presentation closed with an invitation to review materials and maps at poweronmidwest.com and to attend the open houses to give the project team site‑specific feedback.

The board took no formal action on the project at the meeting; presenters said the public comment period on the certificate of need was ongoing and additional public engagement events were planned.