IURC Eminent Domain for LEAP Transmission Lines Clears Despite OUCC Objection

Daniel BurkePublished every day

The IURC ruling Wednesday gives Wabash Valley Transmission public utility status and the power to condemn Boone County land for two lines feeding the LEAP district in Lebanon, where Eli Lilly plans manufacturing and Meta plans a data center. The commission found Viridon's capital base makes abandonment unlikely. The Office of Utility Consumer Counselor disagreed and is reviewing what happens to Wabash Valley's co-op members if Viridon exits the project the way American Transmission Company is now asking FERC to force in Wisconsin, where Viridon lost certification on a $350 million project in March. The lines are targeted for 2029. If your expansion in Boone County depends on that date, confirm with your serving utility how your service date is tied to these projects, then ask what happens to your interconnection if the corridor slips a year.

For your morning huddle

How do I find out if my Boone County expansion timeline depends on the LEAP transmission lines?

Ask your serving utility directly whether your interconnection or service date is tied to the Wabash Valley Transmission corridor, then ask what happens to that date if the project slips past 2029.

Briefing note

On Wednesday, the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission granted Wabash Valley Transmission Co. (a joint venture of Wabash Valley Power Alliance and Blackstone-backed Chicago developer Viridon Midcontinent) public-utility status with eminent domain authority for three transmission projects totaling 100 miles (34 miles at 138kV, 66 at 345kV). Two of the lines serve Boone County's LEAP Research and Innovation District, where Eli Lilly & Co. plans a manufacturing complex and Meta Platforms plans a data center; the third connects the 720-megawatt St. Joseph Energy Center gas plant into the broader MISO grid. Indiana's Office of Utility Consumer Counselor asked the commission to add ownership oversight and deny condemnation power, and the IURC largely declined both requests.

Impact: This order is effectively a regulatory workaround for Viridon: the same Blackstone-backed developer was just stripped of three substations on a $350 million Wisconsin transmission project in March after failing to clear public-utility certification fast enough, and American Transmission Company has since filed a 393-page FERC complaint to void Viridon's remaining Wisconsin award entirely. Indiana just handed Viridon exactly the certified status and condemnation authority Wisconsin withheld, meaning if FERC sides with ATC, capital pressure on this Indiana JV could intensify right as Boone County easement negotiations get sensitive, a contingency the OUCC's exit-risk warning wasn't hypothetical about.
Watch: The OUCC's formal review of the order and any FERC ruling on ATC's complaint against Viridon in the parallel Wisconsin case.

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IURC Eminent Domain for LEAP Transmission Lines Clears Despite OUCC Objection
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