May 29, 2025
U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Approval of Uinta Basin Railway, Clearing Path for Utah Energy Infrastructure Expansion
Supreme Court Ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a decisive 8-0 ruling in favor of the Uinta Basin Railway project, reinstating federal approval and clearing a major legal obstacle for one of Utah’s most significant infrastructure developments in decades.
The Court’s unanimous decision reverses a prior ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, which had vacated the Surface Transportation Board’s (STB) 2021 approval. The D.C. Circuit had previously found deficiencies in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), claiming it did not sufficiently analyze potential “upstream” drilling and “downstream” refining impacts.
In the opinion authored by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, the Court reaffirmed that under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), federal agencies are obligated to evaluate the environmental consequences directly associated with the project before them—but are not required to expand analysis to speculative or indirect impacts beyond their regulatory authority.
“NEPA is a procedural cross-check, not a substantive roadblock,” Justice Kavanaugh wrote, underscoring the need for judicial deference to agency expertise in defining the scope of environmental review.
Project Background
The Uinta Basin Railway, an approximately 88-mile rail line, will connect the energy-rich Uinta Basin in northeastern Utah to the national rail network. The line is designed to provide year-round transportation of the region’s distinctive “waxy crude” oil and other commodities to markets across North America, particularly Gulf Coast refineries.
The project is being advanced by the Seven County Infrastructure Coalition, with Rio Grande Pacific Corporationserving as the selected operator and various private partners providing financing and engineering support.
Next Steps
With the Supreme Court’s ruling, the STB’s 2021 approval is fully reinstated. Project proponents can now move forward with subsequent steps including:
Final right-of-way and land-use permitting
Construction and financing arrangements
Coordination with state and federal agencies on implementation timelines
While the decision removes the principal legal barrier, construction will proceed only after completion of these regulatory and logistical milestones.