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Released February 01, 2021 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Xcel Energy Incorporated (NASDAQ:XEL) (Minneapolis, Minnesota) weathered a rough 2020 and managed to grow its profits 6% from the previous year, despite a pandemic-fueled drag on sales. The electricity provider was one of the first in the U.S. to target an entirely clean power portfolio by 2050, and its foresight might pay off as a new presidential administration gets serious about renewable energy. Industrial Info is tracking $4.3 billion worth of active projects from Xcel, about $1.7 billion of which is attributed to wind-generation projects, most of which are under construction.
Click on the image at right for a graph detailing Xcel's active projects, by U.S. state.
Xcel's capital expenditures for full-year 2021 are expected to total $4.475 billion, with about $1.2 billion slated for electric distribution projects, $870 million for electric transmission, $630 million for electric generation, $615 million for natural gas and $610 million for renewables. Two subsidiaries, Public Service Company of Colorado (PSCo) and the Minnesota-based Northern States Power Company (NSP-Minnesota), are slated for $1.7 billion and $1.93 billion of the total amount, respectively.
Xcel added nearly 1,500 megawatts (MW) of wind to its system in 2020, and it expects another 800 MW will be in service by the end of 2021. This includes the $320 million second-phase addition at the Blazing Star Windfarm in Hendricks, Minnesota, which is expected to generate 200 MW from 90 turbines. Blazing Star's first phase, which had an identical capacity, was completed in April 2020. Minnesota also will be home to the $300 million Freeborn Wind Energy Center near Glenville, which will generate 200 MW from 100 turbines after it wraps up toward the end of the year. For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on Blazing Star II and Freeborn.
"The wind portfolio is projected to provide customer savings of more than $160 million over the life of the assets," said Benjamin Fowke, the chief executive officer of Xcel, in an earnings-related conference call. "It will create jobs, jump-start the economy and reduce carbon."
Xcel also is keeping pace with the power-generation market's large-scale shift from coal to natural gas. The company recently accelerated the planned closure of two coal-fired plants in Colorado: the Hayden Generating Station in Routt County, which will cease generation by the end of 2028, and Craig Station in Moffat County, which will end by 2030. Xcel also intends to convert the coal-fired Harrington Power Station in Amarillo, Texas, to natural gas by the end of 2024, in three phases, each estimated at $12.5 million. For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on the conversions of Unit 1, Unit 2 and Unit 3, each of which has a capacity of 350 MW.
"In 2020, we estimate that we reduced carbon emissions by about 50% from 2005 levels," Fowke said in the earnings call. "And we remain on track to achieve an 80% carbon reduction by 2030." He later added: "We think we can do zero carbon--not net zero, but zero carbon--by 2050."
Xcel's transmission business has benefited from significant growth in New Mexico, where it is preparing to begin construction on a $62.5 million transmission line from Jal to Loving, in the state's southeast corner bordering Texas. The line will run 42 miles and connect three substations to resolve potential transmission and voltage stability issues in the area, which includes heavily developed oil and gas fields in the Permian Basin. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
In addition to the abovementioned projects, Industrial Info is tracking 30 maintenance-related projects by Xcel that are slated to begin through 2024. Click here for a list.
Xcel's operating revenues totaled $2.95 billion for fourth-quarter 2020, a 5.3% increase from fourth-quarter 2019, although full-year sales totaled $11.53 billion, essentially unchanged from 2019. Net income dropped 1.4% from fourth-quarter 2019 to $288 million, but the full-year totaled $1.47 billion, a 7.36% increase from 2019.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.
Click on the image at right for a graph detailing Xcel's active projects, by U.S. state.Xcel's capital expenditures for full-year 2021 are expected to total $4.475 billion, with about $1.2 billion slated for electric distribution projects, $870 million for electric transmission, $630 million for electric generation, $615 million for natural gas and $610 million for renewables. Two subsidiaries, Public Service Company of Colorado (PSCo) and the Minnesota-based Northern States Power Company (NSP-Minnesota), are slated for $1.7 billion and $1.93 billion of the total amount, respectively.
Xcel added nearly 1,500 megawatts (MW) of wind to its system in 2020, and it expects another 800 MW will be in service by the end of 2021. This includes the $320 million second-phase addition at the Blazing Star Windfarm in Hendricks, Minnesota, which is expected to generate 200 MW from 90 turbines. Blazing Star's first phase, which had an identical capacity, was completed in April 2020. Minnesota also will be home to the $300 million Freeborn Wind Energy Center near Glenville, which will generate 200 MW from 100 turbines after it wraps up toward the end of the year. For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on Blazing Star II and Freeborn.
"The wind portfolio is projected to provide customer savings of more than $160 million over the life of the assets," said Benjamin Fowke, the chief executive officer of Xcel, in an earnings-related conference call. "It will create jobs, jump-start the economy and reduce carbon."
Xcel also is keeping pace with the power-generation market's large-scale shift from coal to natural gas. The company recently accelerated the planned closure of two coal-fired plants in Colorado: the Hayden Generating Station in Routt County, which will cease generation by the end of 2028, and Craig Station in Moffat County, which will end by 2030. Xcel also intends to convert the coal-fired Harrington Power Station in Amarillo, Texas, to natural gas by the end of 2024, in three phases, each estimated at $12.5 million. For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on the conversions of Unit 1, Unit 2 and Unit 3, each of which has a capacity of 350 MW.
"In 2020, we estimate that we reduced carbon emissions by about 50% from 2005 levels," Fowke said in the earnings call. "And we remain on track to achieve an 80% carbon reduction by 2030." He later added: "We think we can do zero carbon--not net zero, but zero carbon--by 2050."
Xcel's transmission business has benefited from significant growth in New Mexico, where it is preparing to begin construction on a $62.5 million transmission line from Jal to Loving, in the state's southeast corner bordering Texas. The line will run 42 miles and connect three substations to resolve potential transmission and voltage stability issues in the area, which includes heavily developed oil and gas fields in the Permian Basin. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
In addition to the abovementioned projects, Industrial Info is tracking 30 maintenance-related projects by Xcel that are slated to begin through 2024. Click here for a list.
Xcel's operating revenues totaled $2.95 billion for fourth-quarter 2020, a 5.3% increase from fourth-quarter 2019, although full-year sales totaled $11.53 billion, essentially unchanged from 2019. Net income dropped 1.4% from fourth-quarter 2019 to $288 million, but the full-year totaled $1.47 billion, a 7.36% increase from 2019.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.
