Minnesota public power utility Rochester Public Utilities, Southern Minnesota Municipal Power Agency, Xcel Energy and Dairyland Power Cooperative recently unveiled plans to build a new transmission line in southern Minnesota.
The transmission line “will help deliver more low-cost renewable energy to electric customers throughout the Upper Midwest while improving overall system reliability and resiliency during extreme weather,” Xcel Energy, an investor-owned utility, noted in an April 5 news release.
The new infrastructure, stretching about 100 miles between Mankato and the Wisconsin border, “will also reduce transmission system congestion and help energy companies in the region reduce carbon emissions and manage the system as older coal plants retire in the coming years,” it said.
Xcel Energy has filed a joint certificate of need and route permit application with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to build a transmission line between Mankato and the Mississippi River near Kellogg, where it will connect with the existing transmission system.
Xcel Energy is leading the permitting and construction efforts, while all four energy providers are collaborating on the portion that will be located on the existing CapX2020 line near Pine Island and an associated 161-kilovolt line that will be relocated as part of this proposal.
The project is part of a transmission expansion identified by the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, along with several other regional projects that will work together to provide economic benefits, regional reliability and improved access to low-cost renewable energy, the utility said.
The proposed 345-kilovolt transmission line will be built between a substation in Mankato and one near Pine Island, and then connect to infrastructure in western Wisconsin. The project also includes a new, approximately 20-mile 161-kilovolt transmission line from near Pine Island to Rochester.
The Public Utilities Commission will review Xcel Energy’s proposal, a process that generally takes approximately 12-18 months and includes opportunities for input from customers, landowners and other key stakeholders. If approved, the company expects to start construction in late 2026 or early 2027 and place the project in service by 2030.
Learn more about the Mankato-Mississippi River project, including detailed maps of the project area.
As the municipal utility of Rochester, Minn., for more than 110 years, RPU provides high-quality and reliable electricity to over 58,000 customers. Water customers number more than 41,000.
SMMPA provides electricity and related services to 17 municipally operated utilities, mostly in south-central and southeastern Minnesota.
