An energy company that had expressed interest in building a $10 billion oil refinery in northeast Kansas received a warm reception from citizens in southeastern South Dakota.

On Tuesday, voters in Union County, proposed site of Hyperion Resources, Inc.'s new refinery, approved a rezoning request submitted by the company by a margin of 58 to 42 percent. The county borders Iowa and includes the western suburbs of Sioux City.

Some Kansas legislators have charged that Hyperion fled the state because of a climate of “regulatory uncertainty” created by the actions of Gov. Kathleen Sebelius' administration after the Kansas Department of Health and Environment banned a $3.6 billion expansion of the Sunflower Electric coal-fired power plant in Holcomb because of fears of "global warming."

The ban came when KDHE Secretary Rod Bremby ignored a recommendation from his own professional staff and arbitrarily denied an air quality permit filed by Sunflower, despite the fact that neither Kansas nor the federal government has set standards for the emission of so-called "greenhouse gases."

Rep. Richard Carlson, a St. Marys Republican, said he was told explicitly by Hyperion officials that the arbitrary rejection of the coal-plant application had created a climate of “regulatory uncertainty” that made it unfeasible for the company to continue pursuing a Kansas project.

Several other lawmakers, including House Speaker Melvin Neufeld, an Ingalls Republican, also tied Hyperion’s exodus from Kansas to the uncertainty created by the coal-plant episode.

Neufeld said he would encourage the Legislature to re-visit the issue during its next session.

“An overwhelming majority of Representatives and Senators serving all 105 Kansas counties voted in support of comprehensive energy legislation this session, but the governor refused to listen and vetoed our efforts to return regulatory certainty to Kansas and guarantee reliable and affordable electricity for all Kansans,” Neufeld said.

“It is clear to me Kansans want an energy policy that is applied equally and fairly to all utility companies and cooperatives," Neufeld added. "We will continue to work on this issue next session.”

The refinery would have created 1,800 permanent jobs, as well as 4,500 temporary jobs during the plant’s construction. It would have been the first refinery built in the U.S. since 1976.

“Some states are running away from energy and we’re saying, ’Please come on in. We recognize how critical it’s going to be for the next generation, ”’ South Dakota governor Mike Rounds, a Republican, told the Sioux Falls Argus-Leader.

Hyperion still faces a significant hurdle before it can begin construction in South Dakota. A 613-page air quality permit application containing many self-imposed restrictions is under review by the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

“This is not a blank check for Hyperion to do whatever they want,” Preston Phillips, a Hyperion executive, said. “There’s a lot of protections in the ordinance for the people of Union County and the state.”

The refinery will emit 17 million tons of carbon dioxide a year. While carbon dioxide is not a pollutant, some fear it contributes to "global warming." Hyperion, however, said its refinery will be among the most environmentally advanced, refineries in the world, producing only ultra-low sulfur gasoline and diesel.

Company officials told media outlets in South Dakota that, until final permits are issued, Hyperion would continue contemplating other sites, though they declined to identify any specific locations.

KTIV-TV in Sioux City reported that Preston Phillips, Hyperion project executive, told reporters, "We still have other sites we are considering. With any big project like this, you've got to keep your options open, you may never know when a fatal flaw may present itself for a particular site."

A spokesperson for the Sebelius administration, Nicole Corcoran, said the administration would welcome further discussions with Hyperion, if the company expressed an interest in re-considering Kansas as a site for the refinery.

Earlier Corcoran had said Sebelius was uncertain whether or not she would approve the refinery project.

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