Frequently Asked Questions

Minnkota Power Cooperative, Inc. (Minnkota) is a regional generation and transmission cooperative formed in 1940 that serves 11 member-owner distribution cooperatives. It also serves as operating agent for the Northern Municipal Power Agency, an association of 12 municipal utilities in the same service region. Together, the Joint System serves more than 130,000 customers. Minnkota’s service area of 34,500 square miles is located in eastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota and is headquartered in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

Over the past ten years, Minnkota’s load has grown at a rate of 2.9 percent annually. In addition, Minnkota’s 2009 Load Forecast study showed that load will continue to grow at a rate of approximately 1.9 percent annually over the next 25 years. In order to adequately serve this future load growth, Minnkota must increase its baseload generation resources. In particular, additional baseload generation is needed by the winter of 2013 to address an increased need for electricity use to serve new residences, commercial accounts, and pipeline pumping projects.

To address the need for additional baseload generation resources, Minnkota recently entered into an agreement to amend an existing power purchase agreement (PPA) with Minnesota Power, a division of ALLETE, and Square Butte Electric Cooperative (Square Butte). Pursuant to this agreement, Minnesota Power released to Minnkota the rights to its share of generation from the Square Butte-owned Milton R Young Station Unit 2 (Young 2) power station. This allows Minnkota to increase its allocation of generation from Young 2 from 50 percent to 100 percent over the next several years. In return, Minnkota has agreed to release its rights for transmitting power from Young 2 on the Square Butte high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) transmission line that terminates near Duluth, Minnesota.

Thus, as a result of the agreement, Square Butte transferred ownership of the HVDC transmission line to Minnesota Power. The agreement between Minnkota, Minnesota Power, and Square Butte provides Minnkota with an additional baseload power supply without the need to construct a new coal-fired plant, and provides Minnesota Power with existing transmission facilities to develop and deliver substantial wind energy from North Dakota to its consumers in Minnesota.

The agreement with Minnesota Power and Square Butte enables Minnkota to begin acquiring additional baseload generation from Young 2 in early 2013. However, because the existing Square Butte HVDC transmission line will no longer be available to carry the full generation output of Young 2, the power generated by Young 2 will need to be transmitted via the alternating-current (AC) transmission system to Minnkota’s service territory in eastern North Dakota and western Minnesota.

Since 2005, regional transmission-system studies have shown that even without additional load growth, there are system voltage stability and load serving issues in eastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota and that the existing AC transmission system is already operating at capacity. System studies also indicate that additional transmission into the northeastern part of North Dakota from the area of concentrated generation in central North Dakota is the preferred alternative in order to address future load growth, system voltage stability, and load serving issues in Minnkota’s service territory.

Minnkota conducted an Alternative Evaluation Study (AES) for the RUS on the proposed Project, which discussed different system alternatives for addressing Minnkota’s Young 2 output transmission requirements utilizing the AC transmission system. The system alternatives are further discussed in Chapter 2, Alternatives. As discussed in the AES, regional transmission studies and Minnkota-specific system studies have shown that the best solution for addressing Minnkota’s transmission requirements, as well as for meeting the voltage stability and load-serving capability needs of the Red River Valley region, is to construct a new transmission facility.

The proposed Project would provide a direct link to Minnkota’s service territory, while providing a major improvement to the regional transmission grid and a sound technical solution to the well-documented northern Red River Valley voltage stability issue. The proposed Project could also support wind generation development in North Dakota. Therefore, the proposed Project would be the optimal alternative to address Minnkota’s and the region’s needs.

The Milton R. Young Station is the primary generating facility for Minnkota. Located near the town of Center, the Young Station consists of two units, Young 1 and Young 2.

Young 2, which began generating electricity on May 11, 1977, is owned by Square Butte Electric Cooperative and operated by Minnkota. Currently, the output from Young 2 is purchased under contract by Minnkota and Minnesota Power. Under the new agreement, Minnesota Power will transfer its 50 percent of the energy rights to Minnkota over a 13-year period beginning in 2013.

One of the goals of the proposed Project will be to free up the capacity of an existing transmission line in North Dakota to carry wind energy. North Dakota ranks high in the country for wind energy potential. The immediate purpose of the Center to Grand Forks Project is to allow energy from proposed Minnesota Power wind energy facilities to be transmitted over the existing HVDC transmission line (currently used by Young 2). Power from Young 2 will be carried over the new line. Future opportunities to carry renewable energy over the new line may also exist.

All electricity customers in the Minnkota service area will benefit from a more robust and reliable electric transmission system. The expansion will also increase the capacity of the existing electric grid system to carry wind energy. The expansion of the renewable energy industry in North Dakota will benefit the entire state and region.

Minnkota plans extensive outreach to property owners and community members within the study corridors. This Web site and the Project information line (800-473-5679) will be maintained to provide up-to-date information regarding the progress of the Project. Throughout the Project, meetings will be held with landowners, local governments and the public to help determine the final route of the transmission line and identify property impacts. Initial meetings are helpful to document property ownership and all avoidance areas in the potential corridor. A contact list is maintained to mail important project information.

Current project maps are available on the Resources page and you can leave your comments for the study team on the Contact Us page. You can also call the project information line at 800-473-5679. Minnkota is dedicated to keeping the public involved in the public process. Please feel free to leave a comment for the team at any time.  

You can provide comments to Minnkota or the RUS on the Contact Us page, or on the project information line (800-473-5679). All comments, information and suggestions are valued . Also, go to the Contact Us page to join the mailing list to keep informed on project activities and public events.

If financing is provided by the USDA Rural Development's Electric Program, Minnkota is required to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Federal permits may be required by agencies, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).

Minnkota will follow the North Dakota regulatory process by applying for two permits from the Public Service Commission (PSC): a Certificate of Corridor Compatibility (N.D.C.C. Section 49-03) and a Route Permit (N.D. Admin Code 69-02). Additional permits from state agencies may be required, including the North Dakota Department of Transportation and the North Dakota Department of Health. Other state agencies will be consulted including but not limited to the State Historical Society of North Dakota, the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, North Dakota Parks and Recreation and the North Dakota State Water Commission.

In addition to the federal and state permit requirements, local county and township Conditional Use Permits (CUPs) along with other local permits may be required. Minnkota will coordinate with local officials throughout the Project.

As Minnkota is seeking financing from the USDA Rural Development's Electric Program, Minnkota is required to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The regulatory process is outlined in 7 CFR 1794.

Minnkota will follow the North Dakota Regulatory Process by applying for two permits from the Public Service Commission (PSC): a Certificate of Corridor Compatibility (N.D.C.C. Section 49-03) and a Route Permit (N.D. Admin Code 69-02).

Planned for this 345-kV transmission line are single-pole steel structures that vary in height from about 130 feet to 150 feet, and have spans (or distance) between structures on an average of 1,000 feet. Structures for the most part will be set on foundations but may be embedded in the ground without foundations.

The voltage and the type of transmission structure being built determine the size of the right-of-way (ROW). For a 345 kV transmission line, the typical ROW is up to 150-feet-wide or 75 feet on either side of the line. In some areas, Minnkota may request a larger ROW to facilitate construction.

Please refer to the ROW and Easement Factsheet for more detailed information.

Compensation for an easement is based on several factors including the local market value of land, the calculated acreage required for the ROW, current land usage and an additional per pole payment. A Project right-of-way agent will prepare a specific estimate for each landowner during the final route selection process.

Landowners have the option of receiving a single sum payment for the easement or receiving payment in annual installments of equal amounts including interest on the outstanding balance. The interest paid by the utility will be at a rate equal to the average rate paid during that year by the Bank of North Dakota on a certificate of deposit in an amount equal to the outstanding balance. The first annual installments shall be prorated. The installment option is paid out over a maximum period of five years and does not apply to any easement providing for compensation of less than five thousand dollars. In the event the landowner elects to receive the compensation in annual payments, the benefits unpaid at the time of a sale of the real estate to which the easement attaches shall accrue to the purchaser of the real estate subject to the easement. The right-of-way agent shall inform the property owner of the owner's option to choose annual installments.

Yes. Every effort is made to ensure safety during construction, operation and maintenance of transmission lines. Lines and line infrastructure are designed to withstand extreme weather conditions. Protective devices at line terminals stop the electricity flow under any abnormal operating circumstances. Utility practices meet or exceed standards set by national electric safety codes.

Electric and magnetic fields (EMF) are created by anything that conducts electricity, including transmission lines, household appliances and business equipment. These fields are strongest closest to their source, so the farther away you are from the source, the less EMF reaches you. EMF exposure from transmission lines, which are high in the air and inside the negotiated easement, is minimal.

Decades of scientific and medical research, reviewed by science organizations and government agencies, have found no cause/effect evidence of threats to human health from EMF.

For more information, please review the EMF factsheet.

Minnkota is proposing overhead lines because of reliability and cost. Underground transmission lines generally cost up to 10 times as much as overhead lines; that's a cost impact customers cannot bear. The technology to build lines underground for long distances is also extremely difficult to manage. With overhead lines, air cools the lines and keeps them at a safe operating temperature. Underground lines require cooling mechanisms, which increases cost and decreases reliability. Locating and repairing underground line failures also takes longer, leading to longer outages. The reactive losses of underground lines are substantially higher than overhead lines, and installation requires lengthy, disruptive construction techniques. Design concerns such as capacity and heat dissipation are frequent limitations. Underground systems are justified primarily in heavily populated downtown urban centers, where right of way is severely limited for overhead lines.

Line construction is expected between 2011 and 2013 after a rigorous public process to determine need and routing. Schedules can change so Minnkota will publish meeting notices in newspapers and on this site. Please continue to check these resources for updated information.

The construction of the line and associated substations is currently estimated at $300 million. Adjusted costs for the Project will be passed on to the 11 distribution cooperatives served by Minnkota through a future wholesale rate structure. At this time, it is not known what the impact on individual cooperative member’s rates might be. However, the building of the new line provides the lowest cost energy solution to meet the future needs of Minnkota and its consumers.

Minnkota is required to route the transmission line at least 500 feet from occupied houses.  The 500-foot avoidance criteria may be waived by the owner of the occupied house if stated in writing. Avoidance criteria laws can be found in the “North Dakota Energy Conversion and Transmission Facility Siting Act (49-22-05.1)”.

Please refer to the Radio, Television, Cell Phone and GPS Interference Factsheet for more detailed information.

If interference occurs, Minnkota would work with the affected entity to correct the issue until reception is obtained. Typically, tightening loose hardware on the transmission line and appropriate modification of the receiving antenna system will resolve any interference problems.

Once the permitting and design work are complete, structures are staked and reviewed with landowners (as available) to make sure the structures will be placed in a satisfactory location. After final pole locations are determined, typical construction follows the steps listed below. During construction, all heavy equipment used will be driven within the easement right of way.

Typical Transmission Line Construction Steps:

1. Construction begins with auguring the holes where the foundations will be set.
2. Once holes are completed, rebar cages, which provide strength and support for concrete foundation, and anchor bolts, the attachment point for the steel structure, are set. 
3. The concrete is then poured and allowed to set for up to 28 days to achieve adequate strength of the concrete.
4. While the concrete is setting, steel structures are laid out near the foundation and put together. 
5. Once the structure is assembled and the concrete is set, the structure is lifted into place and set on the foundation. 
6. With structures set, the wire is strung between poles.
7. The transmission line is completed, energized and the right-of-way is restored.

Minnkota will follow the transmission design guidelines set in Suggested Practices for Avian Protection on Power Line and Mitigating Bird Collisions with Power Lines. The poles are constructed in a manner that reduces the potential for nest building on the tower and crossarms by not providing a flat parallel or perpendicular surface that would hold a nest.  In addition, the phase wires are spaced further apart to reduce the likelihood of electrocution. 

Minnkota will use bird flight diverters, where needed, to minimize bird collision with transmission lines and help protect species of birds within the project area. Bird flight diverters are used to make the line seem larger to flying birds, which helps them avoid collisions with the wires.  When properly installed, bird flight diverters have proven to significantly reduce bird collisions and injury.