Xcel Energy eyes 4.7 GW of new solar, wind parks by 2032

• United States utility Xcel Energy Inc (NASDAQ: XEL) has acquired regulative approval to install 4.65 GW of wind and also solar energy plants by 2032 as part of a larger plan to broaden its renewables portfolio and also generate 100% carbon-free electrical energy by 2050.

The proposal is a component of the firm's Upper Midwest Energy Plan, which was removed by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission last week. The campaign will allow the utility to reduce the carbon discharges from the electrical power offered to its Upper Midwest consumers by over 85% by 2030.

Under the plan, Xcel Energy will retire every one of its coal-fired generation facilities in the Upper Midwest by the end of the decade and also build 2,150 MW of wind and 2,500 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) parks by 2032. Afterwards year, an extra 1,100 MW of renewable resource capability will certainly go online. At the same time, the utility claimed it will prolong the operation of its Monticello nuclear plant by 10 years via 2040.

"This decision means greater than 80% of our clients' electricity will be carbon free by the end of the decade [.]," stated Bob Frenzel, president and also CEO of Xcel Energy.

Xcel Energy's Upper Midwest system serves consumers in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin as well as Michigan. The utility noted it will need more governing nods for some aspects of the plan, as well as approval for additional "constantly readily available" source of power.