This study investigates the barriers to local community participation in power transmission line projects within the service area of Fars Regional Electric Company. Employing a qualitative approach and thematic analysis, the research draws on data collected through semi-structured interviews with 28 participants (14 government officials and 14 local stakeholders), participatory observation, and document analysis. The findings reveal that barriers to local stakeholder participation in power transmission line projects can be categorized into five main themes. First, the institutional trust gap, as the most significant factor, is rooted in past negative experiences, lack of transparency, and perceived discrimination in compensation distribution. Second, the inefficient compensation system suffers from inaccurate valuation, complex bureaucracy, chronic payment delays, and neglect of indirect damages. Third, tokenistic participation and untimely information dissemination reflect a top-down approach in which communities are excluded from key stages such as route selection. Fourth, the unjust distribution of benefits and costs forces local communities to bear the full burden of social, environmental, and economic costs while benefits accrue to national or regional levels. Fifth, structural incoherence and governance challenges include inconsistencies in laws, assessments, and implementation across various organizations. The study concludes that the root cause of the crisis in power transmission line projects in the Fars region is the crisis of trust and participation, stemming from an inefficient institutional approach. Breaking this vicious cycle requires a transition from the "guided participation" and "tokenistic participation" model toward a "genuine participation" model—a model that, based on theoretical frameworks and successful international experiences, rests upon transparency, procedural justice, early-stage participation, recognition of local knowledge, and the design of fair and participatory compensation mechanisms. This transition demands transformation at three levels: the attitudinal level (shifting officials' mindset from confronting opponents to collaborating with local stakeholders), the structural level (establishing mediating institutions, reforming land acquisition and compensation laws, and creating transparent and accountable processes), and the operational level (designing participatory compensation mechanisms, empowering local communities, utilizing local capacities such as trusted elders and councils, and establishing effective dispute resolution mechanisms).