February18, 2021 Sahan Journal Andrew Hazzard The massive power outages in Texas from extreme cold are unlikely to occur in Minnesota, but parts of the state have been hit by rolling blackouts due to high demand on energy grids. Controlled blackouts hit Moorhead this week, leaving residents without power for bouts lasting about 30 minutes,…
18Feb
Group pushes for more solar and storage in Minnesota resource plan
February 18, 2021 PV Magazine William Driscoll Minnesota’s Xcel Energy could save consumers money by accelerating its plans to build 3.5 GW of utility-scale PV, and allowing for 2.6 GW of distributed solar and 1.3 GW of distributed storage, according to a resource plan developed by Vibrant Clean Energy (VCE) and filed with state regulators…
17Feb
How Does a Utility Turn a Net-Zero Vision into Reality? That’s What They’re Arguing About in Minnesota
February 17, 2021 Inside Climate News Dan Gearino In the national debate over the role of natural gas power in the energy transition, some of the key players are digging in for a battle in Minnesota. The state is the home of Xcel Energy, the first large U.S. utility to commit to reaching net-zero emissions,…
22Jan
State regulators fine Xcel Energy $1M over dispute with solar developers
January 21, 2021 Star Tribune Mike Hughlett All Energy Solar filed complaints over delays connecting smaller projects to the electricity grid. Minnesota utility regulators Thursday slapped Xcel Energy with a rare $1 million fine for a bevy of complaints over delays in connecting solar projects to the electricity grid. Almost all of the roughly 120…
21Jan
Citizens Utility Board testifies in support of Minnesota 100% carbon-free energy bill
January 21, 2021 Saint Paul, MN—Today, the Citizens Utility Board of Minnesota (CUB) testified to the Minnesota House of Representatives Climate and Energy Committee in support of a bill that would require the state’s electric utilities to supply 100% of their electricity from carbon-free sources by 2040. “The 100% carbon-free energy bill puts Minnesota’s electricity…
10Dec
Empowering Minnesota’s energy consumers
December 10, 2020 Clean Energy Resource Teams Marie Donahue In November of 2020, Carmen Carruthers, Outreach Director at the Citizens Utility Board of Minnesota (CUB), sat down virtually for a conversation with Marie Donahue, Sustainability Storyteller with Clean Energy Resource Teams (CERTs). Carruthers shares how CUB uses advocacy and outreach to advance affordable and reliable utility service…
10Nov
Minnesota utility regulators getting pushback on economic stimulus initiative
November, 8 2020 Star Tribune Mike Hughlett Minnesota utility regulators made an unusual call this spring. They asked the state’s electric and gas utilities to pitch investments that could help jump-start the state’s economy, which has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. Xcel Energy responded with a multibillion-dollar plan that it said could create…
03Nov
Xcel’s Minnesota customers will pay more next year — the question is how much
November 2, 2020 Star Tribune Mike Hughlett Xcel Energy has filed for an electricity rate increase of $597 million, or 20% over three years, with most of it hitting pocketbooks next year. But the Minneapolis-based utility — by far the state’s largest electricity provider with 1.3 million customers — also said the increase may not be…
28Oct
Shut off protections for Minnesota residential customers
Published October 28, 2020; Updated October 4, 2021 This heating season can bring more challenges to families who are already struggling to keep up with utility bills. Contrary to common belief, utilities can be shut off during the winter months. Fortunately, Minnesota law contains consumer protections, and some extra protections are in place during the…
01Oct
Celebrating Energy Awareness Month
Published October 1, 2020 CUB is pleased to announce that Governor Walz has declared October Energy Awareness Month in Minnesota. Celebrating Energy Awareness this time of year has become a CUB tradition. Last year we encouraged people to think about how electricity we use is generated. This year we want to focus on issues of…