Public Comment Form

Commenting open: June 27, 2024 12:00AM CT - July 29, 2024 11:59PM CT.

Xcel Energy (Blue Lake) - Air Permit

We invite you to comment on the draft air quality permit for Xcel Energy's Blue Lake electric generation plant.


Xcel Energy operates the Blue Lake electric generation plant near Shakopee to generate and provide electricity to the grid during spikes of demand using six turbine generators. Four of the turbines are oil-fired and two of the turbines are natural gas-fired.


The main pollutants are products of combustion including nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, volatile organic compounds, particulate matter, hazardous air pollutants, and greenhouse gases.


The draft air permit authorizes new construction for the installation of three dual-fuel generators rated at 9.37 megawatts each, three emergency diesel-fired generators rated at 750 kilowatts each, two emergency generators rated at 550 kilowatts each, two 100,000-gallon diesel storage tanks, and a paved roads fugitive source. Emissions from the three dual-fuel generators will be controlled by oxidation catalysts individually and selective catalytic reduction in series. The amendment also revises limits on the two existing natural gas-fired turbines and requires removal of the four oil-fired turbines now onsite.


An air quality operating permit is required for certain existing facilities or the construction of new facilities that have the potential to emit a significant level of any regulated pollutant. The permit includes all requirements for operation and procedures, applicable rules, emission standards, monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting. If additional conditions change and modifications are necessary, the MPCA may review and amend the permit.



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Thank you for providing feedback on this project. We value your comments and will use them to assess this project further.


In your comments, please state your interest in the permit application or the draft permit; the explicit actions you wish the MPCA to take, including specific references to the section of the draft permit you believe should be changed; and the reasons supporting your position, stated with sufficient specificity as to allow the MPCA to investigate the merits of the position.


If you want to submit a letter, you can upload the letter on this website or submit it via US Mail to the following address:


Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
c/o Tarik Hanafy
520 Lafayette Road
Saint Paul, MN 55155

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You may attach up to five 20 MB files to accompany your submission. Allowed formats are pdf, jpg, jpeg, png, txt, gif, doc, docx, xlsx, xls. If you experience technical difficulties submitting your comment please contact the person listed at the bottom of this page.


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