Alternative Resource Portfolios for Xcel Minnesota 2019 IRP

Sierra Club
Project Completed February 2021

On behalf of the Sierra Club, Synapse used the EnCompass capacity expansion and production cost simulation software to model alternative resource portfolios in the Xcel Minnesota 2019 IRP. In contrast to Xcel's modeling, Synapse found that the most economic resource portfolio did not include the proposed Sherco combined cycle facility or the extension of the license for the Monticello nuclear plant.

The Sierra Club's preferred plan, in contrast, added increased amounts of distributed solar as well as utility-scale solar, wind, and battery storage. In surreply comments, Synapse also used the EnCompass model to challenge Xcel's assertion that it needed new combustion turbines to meet needs for firm, dispatchable resources as early as 2027. The Synapse modeling showed economic replacement of these resources with battery storage and renewables.