Last week, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) approved Xcel Energy's $750 million plan to decommission and rebuild, or "repower" five wind facilities before the end of their useful 20-year lifetime. The implications of Xcel's proposal are massive because it demonstrates that many wind facilities don't even last for 20 years before utilities seek to tear down their old turbines and build new ones.
According to documents filed with the PUC, Xcel will repower turbines at Grand Meadow, Nobles, Borders Winds, Pleasant Valley, and assist with repowering the Ewington facility. Repowering wind facilities can involve tearing down the old wind turbines...
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