Minnesota Power hopes to jump start solar program to hasten COVID economic recovery

Minnesota Power is asking regulators for an expedited review of its plans for a $40 million solar energy investment. The goal is to jump start the region’s economic recovery, which will further advance Minnesota Power’s EnergyForward strategy to create more carbon-free energy.

The investor-owned utility has asked the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to consider acting quickly on its plans to construct approximately 20 megawatts of solar arrays. Minnesota Power also released additional details on all three solar projects that were announced in June after the MPUC asked utilities to evaluate projects they could speed up as a way to support the recovery of local economies. The three solar projects will also help the company meet the state of Minnesota’s Solar Energy Standard sooner.

The projects are a 9.6-megawatt array at Minnesota Power's Laskin Energy Center, adjacent to the Laskin Energy Park in Hoyt Lakes; a 10-megawatt array near the company's Sylvan Hydro Station near Brainerd, and a 1.6-megawatt array on a proposed site on Riley Road in Duluth.

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