The DOE Loan Programs Office has released a Draft EIS (DOE/EIS-0554) for Phase 1 of the Grain Belt Express Transmission Line Project, a proposed 542-mile, 600-kV HVDC overhead transmission line running from Ford County, Kansas to Monroe County, Missouri, along with AC connector lines and two converter stations. The federal action under review is a loan guarantee to applicant Grain Belt Express, LLC under Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Four federal cooperating agencies participated: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, National Park Service, and U.S. EPA. The DEIS analyzes two alternatives: the proposed action and no action. Public comments are due by March 3, 2025, with six public meetings scheduled in February 2025.12