This morning, Xcel Energy announced plans to issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) for up to 150 MW of solar energy generation. Xcel included its RFP plans in a filing submitted to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (Commission) outlining its strategy for complying with Minnesota’s new solar energy standard. The standard requires that public utilities like Xcel obtain 1.5 percent of their retail sales from solar energy resources by 2020. Xcel expects to obtain about 1/3 of its solar requirement from distributed solar resources (including community solar gardens and small projects eligible for certain incentives). The other 2/3 of the mandate would be met via large-scale solar projects, which are the focus of the RFP.

Xcel anticipates issuing the RFP on April 15, 2014 with proposals due June 1, 2014. Following contract negotiations, selected projects would be submitted to the Commission in October 2014. 

In other Minnesota solar news, the Commission conditionally approved Xcel’s community solar garden plan yesterday, including the interim rates we wrote about last week. A compliance filing will be due within 30 days of the Commission’s written order. Then, Xcel is required to open the program within 90 days of the Commission’s approval of the compliance filing.