Lyon County Board Meeting - October 17, 2023

Representatives from Xcel Energy gave an update on the status of the Minnesota Energy Connection project to the Lyon County Board of Commissioners at the Oct. 17 Lyon County Board meeting.
Xcel Energy is proposing to build a new double-circuit 345 kilovolt (kV) transmission line (the Minnesota Energy Connection project) between the existing Sherco Power Plant in Becker and a new substation in Lyon County.
If approved, the project would run between 160-180 miles and will support Xcel Energy’s and the State of Minnesota’s transition to carbon-free electricity by re-using the existing grid connections at Sherco, which will enable Xcel to deliver cost-effective energy in the Upper Midwest.
Re-using the existing interconnection is key for Xcel’s ability to continue to deliver new renewable energy to customers at that connection to the regional transmission grid as the coal units at Sherburne County Generation Station retire by the end of 2030.
The project will essentially replace coal energy from the Sherco plant with new, renewable energy in Minnesota to meet Minnesota’s 100x2040 law and further Xcel’s carbon-free energy vision.
“It’s really important for us for the entire energy system of the state to reuse the existing grid connection at the Sherco plant, which then feeds into the broader grid throughout central Minnesota and really the entire region,” said Randy Fordice, manager of Transmission Communications and Public Affairs at Xcel. “Wind energy is one of the most affordable types of energy on our system, so it will allow us to deliver reliable energy from that existing grid connection and use that connection to deliver affordable renewable energy to customers.”
The Minnesota Energy Connection project would include a double circuit transmission line, an intermediate substation and a substation to house voltage support equipment. The project is part of Xcel’s most recently-approved Integrated Resource Plan and will be entirely owned by Xcel. Both circuits will be co-located on single-pole structures to minimize impacts to the human and natural environments.
Xcel said it is committed to working closely with landowners and in consultation with local communities. In developing the route options for this project, Xcel has conducted significant public outreach to landowners in the project area, including holding virtual open houses in November 2022 and in-person open houses along potential routing corridors in spring and summer 2023.
Two major approvals must be obtained from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission before a high-voltage transmission line like the proposed project can be built: a Certificate of Need and a Route Permit. The Company filed a Certificate of Need application in March 2023 and anticipates filing a Route Permit application on Oct. 30. In this case, the Commission will use joint proceedings for the project’s Certificate of Need and Route Permit applications and will also conduct a joint environmental review.
In the joint proceedings, the Commission will consider whether the project is needed, and the appropriate size, configuration and timing.
“The Route Permit has taken longer (than the Certificate of Need application),” said Matthew Langan, the principal agent from Xcel for this project. “It’s a complex project — about 175 miles, and there might be two of them. What the Commission has asked us to do is pause the Certificate of Need application, wait until the Route Permit application is filed, and then they will review both at the same time.”
The Route Permit application will identify at least two route options between project end points (Sherburne County and southern Lyon County). Langan said information gathered from the public will be used for a constructibility review, with the ultimate goal of proposing two routes in the Route Permit application. The Commission will also consider the routes for the proposed project. There are multiple opportunities for stakeholder and public input throughout the proceedings, and a future meeting open to the public will likely take place in Marshall.
A public hearing on the project will likely take place next summer. There is an opportunity for additional route segments to be considered. A decision on the route(s) will come at the end of 2024 or sometime during the first quarter of 2025.
Langan said Xcel is sensitive to the concerns of southwest Minnesota residents when it comes to disrupting agricultural land.
“What we heard in Lyon County and really in the southern half of the project area, is that (the project) could create inordinate problems for agriculture — that was something we really learned through this outreach,” Langan said. “People are concerned with areas where we would be paralleling an existing line that’s already on the field line.”
Construction on the transmission line is scheduled to begin in late 2025, with service expected in 2027.

In other business Tuesday:
• The board approved a request for $25,000 in ARPA funds for the City of Taunton. A motion to approve the funding request was made by Commissioner Gary Crowley and seconded by Commissioner Tom Andries.
• After a request from Board Chair Rick Anderson, the board approved crafting a letter of recommendation to the Minnesota State Legislature for the City of Russell, which is seeking $4 million in bonding from the State for a proposed $22 million water and sewer infrastructure project. Crowley made the motion to write a letter of support, and Commissioner Todd Draper seconded. If the City doesn’t receive bonding money, Anderson said monthly water and sewer rates for Russell residents will triple.
• The board approved allowing the County’s environmental department to advertise for Phase 9B1 landfill development construction. The project would commence in 2024 and include a 4.5 acre site, which would buy the County about six years or room. The goal is to get bids back around Thanksgiving.