Minnesota Aims to Double its Renewable Energy Standard with Wind, Solar Growth

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Minnesota has launched an effort to double its renewable energy standard from 25% by 2025 to 50% by 2030, as state representatives hope to drive down the cost of renewable energy and create much-needed jobs. Under existing state law, electric utilities are required to get 25% of their power from renewable resources by 2025.

Minnesota Lieutenant Governor Tina Smith announced the effort in March, in hopes of improving air quality by incentivizing renewable energy developers; building natural gas-fired generation; and announcing the closure of two of the state's largest coal-fired power plants.

Currently, Industrial Info is tracking 16 renewable energy projects in Minnesota valued at $3.19 billion, five of which are solar-generation projects valued at more than $183 million; the remaining are wind generation or expansion projects.

Minnesota ranks in the top 10 states for wind generation in the U.S., making up the largest share of renewable generation for any state, at 17% of the its total energy base. Solar generation in the state ranks the 16th in the U.S., with about 0.06% of the state's total energy base, but it is expected to grow much more quickly through 2025. Biomass-fired generation contributes about 3%, and hydroelectric generation provides 1% of Minnesota's total energy base.

Minnesota is also the home of one of the largest solar power plants in the Midwest. The 100-megawatt (MW) North Star solar facility near North Branch, Minnesota, is owned by D.E. Shaw Group (New York, New York) and was constructed by Swinerton Renewable Energy (San Diego, California). It provides renewable energy to Xcel Energy Incorporated (NYSE:XEL) (Minneapolis, Minnesota).

The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) recently gave its unanimous approval to the proposed, 500-kilovolt (kV) Great Northern transmission line project by Manitoba Hydro Electric Energy and Natural Gas (Winnipeg, Manitoba), which will allow the import of hydroelectric generation from Canada. The 224-mile transmission project will assist Minnesota in reaching its renewable generation goals when it is completed in 2020, and would deliver an additional 383 MW of hydroelectric generation to the state.

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