Minnesota Energy Infrastructure Permitting Act

The Minnesota Energy Infrastructure Permitting Act, signed in May 2024, consolidates and reforms Minnesota’s review and permitting process for energy generation, storage, and transmission projects.

Broadly speaking, the Legislation:

• Overhauls Minnesota’s energy infrastructure permitting processes, consolidating and conforming previously distinct pathways, streamlining review timelines, and generally modernizing the state’s environmental review.
• Imposes congestion study and reporting requirements on entities that own more than 750 miles of transmission lines in Minnesota.
• Addresses congestion in the distributed resource interconnection process by directing the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to issue a standard order that governs the related upgrade process and establishing an ombudsperson to mediate interconnection disputes.
• Shortens the time for incumbent transmission owners to provide notice under the state’s right of first refusal (ROFR) statute.
• Requires a route permit from the Commission for carbon dioxide (CO2) pipelines and instructs the Commission to conduct a study on CO2 pipeline impacts.