SF 85

1st Engrossment - 90th Legislature (2017 - 2018) Posted on 05/11/2018 04:36pm

A bill for an act
relating to energy; authorizing construction and operation of a natural gas combined
cycle electric generation plant.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1. new text begin NATURAL GAS COMBINED CYCLE ELECTRIC GENERATION
PLANT.
new text end

new text begin (a) Notwithstanding Minnesota Statutes, section 216B.243 and Minnesota Statutes,
chapter 216E, a public utility may, at its sole discretion, construct, own, and operate a natural
gas combined cycle electric generation plant as the utility proposed to the Public Utilities
Commission in docket number E-002/RP-15-21, or as revised by the utility and approved
by the Public Utilities Commission in the latest resource plan filed after the effective date
of this section, provided that the plant is located on property in Sherburne County, Minnesota,
already owned by the public utility, and will be constructed after January 1, 2018.
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new text begin (b) Reasonable and prudently incurred costs and investments by a public utility under
this section may be recovered pursuant to the provisions of Minnesota Statutes, section
216B.16.
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new text begin (c) No less than 20 months prior to the start of construction, a public utility intending
to construct a plant under this section shall file with the commission an evaluation of the
utility's forecasted costs prepared by an independent evaluator and may ask the commission
to establish a sliding scale rate of return mechanism for this capital investment to provide
an incentive for the utility to complete the project at or under the forecasted costs.
new text end