Xcel Energy outlines Minnesota Energy Connection timeline, recommends 'modified blue' route affecting Meeker County

Xcel Energy briefed the Meeker County Board of Commissioners on the Minnesota Energy Connection project, saying a draft environmental impact statement will be published in about three weeks and administrative‑law‑judge hearings are planned in October and November, including sessions in Litchfield. The company said written comments on the draft EIS will be accepted through November 25.

"It's a double circuit 345 kilovolt transmission line that if approved will be approximately a 175 to 180 miles depending on the final route that is selected," Randy Fordyce, Xcel transmission public affairs manager, told the board. Fordyce said the filing included two primary route options (referred to as the purple and blue routes) and many connector segments produced during the EIS scoping process.

Xcel said it has analyzed the route alternatives and intends to ask the Public Utilities Commission to approve what the company terms the "modified blue" route. "We believe that the blue route is the least impactful route, of those that we proposed," Matt Langan, Xcel's principal land rights agent, told commissioners, while noting the commission—not Xcel—will make the final decision.

The company described next steps for property‑level work if a route permit is issued: negotiating voluntary easements with landowners, conducting cultural and environmental reviews and doing preliminary survey and geotechnical work. Xcel representatives said easement language will vary by parcel and that landowners retain title to their property; they also said Minnesota law allows some landowners to request full‑parcel purchase in certain circumstances. Representatives added the company prefers negotiated acquisitions but noted it has eminent‑domain authority as a last resort.

Commissioners sought clarity on local impacts. When asked whether transmission lines could interfere with over‑the‑air internet or satellite service in line‑of‑sight areas, Xcel said it will investigate and mitigate interference where it occurs, for example by relocating a satellite dish on a property. "If our transmission line interferes with Internet service, then it is our responsibility to make sure that that situation is mitigated," Langan said.

Xcel also identified a possible siting area for a voltage support substation along Highway 4 in southern Meeker County and said it would likely seek a roughly 40‑acre parcel; the company said the substation footprint would be smaller than the parcel acquired. Commissioners pressed Xcel to provide more detailed, county‑level maps; Xcel agreed to email static PDFs or shape files of the modified blue route and the identified substation siting area to county staff.

Company officials reiterated that the administrative‑law‑judge (ALJ) will prepare a report and recommendation to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission after hearings and the final decision is expected in 2025. In the meantime, Xcel encouraged landowners to review maps on its project website and to file written comments by the Nov. 25 deadline.

The board did not vote on formal action related to the project at the meeting; Xcel committed to share finer‑scale mapping with county staff and to follow up on requests for broader public notice of the company's preferred route.

Next steps: the draft EIS publication, ALJ hearings in October–November and the Nov. 25 written comment deadline. The Public Utilities Commission will make the final route decision in 2025.