President Donald Trump says humans contribute to changing climate "to an extent," and that "forest management" is a key to addressing California wildfires. Joe Biden vows no more coal or oil-fired plants built.

The company plans to hit net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, will retire all its Midwest coal by 2027 or sooner, and add almost 1,000 MW of solar by the end of 2022.

Project stakeholders are closing in on the necessary federal permits to restart work, but environmental advocates foresee an "uphill battle" for developers to bring the pipeline in service by early next year.

But if Democrats do not gain a majority in the Senate, "that's a more difficult path," said Whitehouse, a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

Pending negotiations over securitization legislation in Missouri could encourage the utility to retire its coal assets faster, according to stakeholders.