Xcel Energy outlines Power on Midwest 765 kV plan; route likely to pass through Pipestone area

Xcel Energy representatives briefed the Pipestone County Board of Commissioners about Power on Midwest, a multi-utility transmission program that includes a proposed 765-kilovolt backbone intended to improve regional grid reliability and expand capacity for wind and solar generation.

The utility team said the MISO tranche 2.1 approval covers a corridor from Big Stone, S.D., to Brookings and on to Lakefield Junction in Minnesota, and that routing work now under way could place the 765-kV route through parts of Pipestone County. Anna Thill, Xcel Energy community relations manager, said the project will enable more renewables and reduce curtailment of existing wind and solar generation. Tim Rogers, Xcel’s manager for siting and land rights, and project manager Jeremy Glick described technical features and the permitting process.

Xcel told commissioners the project would require large substations or expansions of existing substations to interconnect the 765-kV circuit, and that right-of-way widths evaluated so far could be as wide as 250 feet. Rogers described typical structures as lattice steel towers about 150–175 feet tall for tangent spans, with typical spacing of roughly 1,100–1,300 feet; engineers will refine structure types and heights during design. The presenters said the 765-kV single-circuit line can move roughly the equivalent capacity of multiple 345-kV circuits while using less total land than multiple lower-voltage lines.

On permitting, Xcel said projects of this scale require both a certificate of need and a route permit from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission; the utility will host public open houses and then file applications for Commission review. The presenters said the certificate-of-need open houses in the region are scheduled for 2025 and that a local open house for the Pipestone area is set for November 4 (certificate-of-need engagement). They also said route studies will present corridors and “leading” options at initial open houses, with refined route proposals presented to regulators later.

Questions from commissioners covered likely county impacts, whether a new substation would be required, structure aesthetics and materials (presenters said structures will be steel but final finishes and designs were not yet decided), and ownership. Xcel said ownership will be split; for the segment discussed the line ownership was described as a 50/50 split between Xcel Energy (referred to as “Accel” in the presentation) and ITC. The presenters repeatedly offered to follow up on detailed technical or regulatory questions and said they would provide additional routing and permitting information as it becomes available.

Commissioners were told how to follow the project and submit comments: the project web site (poweronmidwest.com), a project phone number and an email address. Xcel representatives encouraged landowners and local governments to attend open houses and submit preferences and constraints during the routing process.