Xcel Energy executives Thursday praised both the MISO long-range transmission plan (LRTP) and late-breaking agreement in D.C. over the $670 billion Inflation Reduction Act, telling financial analysts both will help the company add 10 GW of renewable energy in its resource plans.
CEO Bob Frenzel said the company is “excited about our transmission expansion opportunity” and expects a $1.2 billion investment for six projects in the LRTP’s $10 billion first tranche of projects. Several projects in Xcel’s Wisconsin footprint have been identified as upgrades, which will keep them in the company’s hands. (See FERC Allows MISO to Exclude Tx Projects from Competition.)
Combined with Xcel’s Colorado Power Pathway — a $1.7-$2 billion, 560- to 650-mile project with regulatory approval — and the transmission needs in its Minnesota resource plan, the company now has about $3.5 billion in large-scale transmission projects.
Frenzel said that will help Xcel add to the renewables it needs for its Minnesota and Colorado resource plans and reach its target of 80% carbon reductions by 2030.
The Minneapolis-based company also reacted positively to the deal reached Wednesday between Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) on a climate package that could be up for a reconciliation vote. (See Schumer, Manchin Reach Climate Deal.)
“It appears to include nearly all the broader clean energy tax credits, including new and extended tax credits for wind, solar, hydrogen storage and nuclear,” Frenzel said. “The energy provisions included in the act would provide substantial customer benefits and help enable our clean energy transition while keeping our customer bills affordable. There’s still a lot of twists and turns that can happen in Washington, but we’re optimistic that the bill could become law.”
Xcel reported second-quarter earnings of $328 million ($0.60/share), slightly above last year’s second-quarter earnings of $311 million ($0.58/share). Operating earnings came in at $0.60/share, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
The company’s share price closed at $72.21 Thursday, up 2.8% from the previous close.
