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Xcel Energy proposes adding hydro, wind power to meet customers’ growing energy needs

MINNEAPOLIS - Xcel Energy today proposed adding hydroelectric and wind power resources to meet Upper Midwest customers’ future base-load energy needs.

“Our proposal offers our customers reliable, reasonably priced base-load generation with very low emissions,” said Cyndi Lesher, president and CEO of Northern States Power Co.-Minnesota, an Xcel Energy company.  

In an application filed with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, Xcel Energy proposed a combined Manitoba Hydro/wind-power package to fill a 375-megawatt base-load shortfall projected by 2015. Base-load power is generation that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The proposal includes purchasing 375 megawatts of power from Manitoba Hydro beginning in 2015 and purchasing or building 380 megawatts of wind generation to be available in 2015 or earlier. The wind resource will complement the Manitoba Hydro purchase; combined, they will provide the same level of reliability as a new 375-megawatt coal plant, but at a lower cost and significantly lower environmental impact.  Approximately 95 percent of the Manitoba Hydro purchase will be hydroelectric power.

Lesher noted that the filing responds to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission’s determination that Xcel Energy will need 375 megawatts of additional base-load generation in 2015 to meet growing customer demand for electricity. Xcel Energy initially had projected a larger shortfall, but the company worked with stakeholders in the resource planning process to reduce the projected gap by increasing conservation efforts and proposing to expand generation capacity at the Monticello, Prairie Island and Sherco base-load plants.

“We determined the proposed Manitoba Hydro/wind-power package was the best way – from an environmental, economic and reliability standpoint – to meet the remaining future needs of our electricity customers in the Upper Midwest,” Lesher said.

Under a new resource acquisition process approved by the commission, other power producers may propose competing projects for consideration through Dec. 18, 2006.  The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission then will determine whether one of those proposals or Xcel Energy’s plan is the best option for customers.

“We look forward to working with stakeholders and alternative power providers in this new process to ensure the best result for our customers,” Lesher said.

Xcel Energy’s proposal will be posted on the company’s Web site at www.xcelenergy.com.

Xcel Energy is a major U.S. electricity and natural gas company with regulated operations in eight Western and Midwestern states. Xcel Energy provides a comprehensive portfolio of energy-related products and services to 3.3 million electricity customers and 1.8 million natural gas customers through its regulated operating companies. Company headquarters are located in Minneapolis. More information is available at www.xcelenergy.com.