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Minnesota PUC Approves Operations Extension for Xcel Energy's Prairie Island Nuclear Plant

LCG, August 15, 2025--Xcel Energy announced that the company received state approval yesterday from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to extend operations of the Prairie Island nuclear plant through the early 2050s. Prairie Island has two units that have a combined generating capacity of 1,100 MW. The units’ current operating licenses expire in 2033 and 2034.

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PGE Announces Addition of 475 MW of Battery Energy Storage Systems to Improve Grid Reliability and Costs

LCG, August 7, 2025--Portland General Electric (PGE) today announced the completion of three, four-hour lithium-ion utility-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) in Oregon, adding 475 MW and more than 1.9 GWh of dispatchable capacity to serve the Portland metro area. Each of these BESS facilities can deliver power during peak demand or when other electric generating facilities are limited, which improves system flexibility, reliability and costs.

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Industry News

PG&E Offers Local Governments Chance for Boosted Revenue

LCG, Dec. 18, 2002--Cities and counties who respond to a proposed agreement by utility Pacific Gas & Electric could receive more in fees from utility-service contracts, but many are waiting before signing on.

The bankrupt PG&E's proposed reorganization plan would mean that both transmission lines and gas pipelines would be sold to companies called GTrans and ETRans. Those companies would need to sign franchise agreements with the cities they serve, which would mark the first time these contracts have undergone any disruption in 65 years. PG&E has offered cities what it says could amount to 20 to 25 percent increases in the amount of franchise fees they are paid.

The League of California Cities has told municipalities that before signing, they should not simply agree to terms which are essentially locked in for the foreseeable future. Cities, the League says, should negotiate to be able to rewrite the agreements based on changing conditions after several years. "In any contract, it's bad if it continues to go on forever with no opportunity to (reflect) changes in the economy and in technology," Frances Medema, who studies policy at the League of California Cities, told the Sacramento Bee.

While Alan Tandy of Bakersfield considered PG&E's offer to be "a polite request," not a high-pressure way to make things easier should its reorganization plan be accepted, the League of California Cities hopes to negotiate on behalf of cities before they rush to sign. A large number of cities have not yet signed, in case the revenue from fees could be even higher than suggested, and made open to future negotiations. The yearly franchise fees, which are paid by companies allowed to provide a service, range from less than $100,000 for smaller towns to around $846,000 for Sacramento.
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