Minnesota Power customers are now receiving half of their energy from renewable sources as the company becomes the first Minnesota utility to deliver fifty percent renewable energy to customers.
The achievement highlights the success of Minnesota Power’s Energy Forward strategy to transition to cleaner energy sources while meeting customer expectations for reliable and affordable electricity. The company reached this milestone when the Nobles 2 wind project in southwestern Minnesota came online this month.
“We are committed to advancing a sustainable future of reliable, affordable and increasingly lower carbon energy for our customers and our communities and this is an important milestone in our clean energy transformation from relying almost completely on coal to delivering 50 percent renewable energy, accomplished while keeping our residential rates the lowest in the state of Minnesota and improving the reliability of our system,” said ALLETE President and CEO Bethany Owen. “We are proud of how far we have come in this transformation, but we know we have more work to do.”
The Nobles 2 wind project will supply renewable energy to Minnesota Power through a 20-year power purchase agreement. The project also is an investment for ALLETE; it is owned by Nobles 2 Power Partners LLC, whose investors include an ALLETE subsidiary, energy company Tenaska and Bright Canyon Energy.
With Nobles 2 operational, Minnesota Power’s wind portfolio has grown to approximately 870 megawatts of owned and contracted wind capacity. The Nobles 2 wind addition also adds geographic diversity to Minnesota Power’s wind portfolio, complementing its North Dakota wind sites and contracts.
Nobles 2 is the second 2020 project to help Minnesota Power reach 50 percent renewable. The first was the Great Northern Transmission line, energized this past June. This 500 kV line delivers 250 megawatts of carbon-free hydropower from Manitoba Hydro to Minnesota Power customers. Innovative power purchase agreements with Manitoba Hydro include a unique wind provision that allows Minnesota Power the flexibility to balance its intermittent wind energy in North Dakota with hydroelectric power that is available on demand.
Beyond this milestone, Minnesota Power is making additional plans to further transform its energy supply.
Leave a Reply