Studies and Reports > 2009 MN Biennial Report > TC Planning Zone > Needs: 6.5.17 Arden Hills Area Load Serving

To inquire about this project, click here.

6.5.17 Arden Hills Area Load Serving

Tracking Number. 2009-TC-N4

Utility. Xcel Energy

Inadequacy. Existing 115 kV transmission infrastructure in the northern Twin Cities has become inadequate to serve load in the area under various contingencies. There are also other deficiencies that will occur later in the 10-year planning horizon, including overloads on Apache Tap – Arden Hills and overloads on the Kohlman Lake 345/115 kV transformers.

Alternatives. Three alternatives were developed to address this inadequacy:

Alternative 1: Construct a new 345/115 kV substation in the Arden Hills area. From this substation, a high capacity 115 kV line would be built to a re-configured Lexington substation.

Alternative 2: Rebuild the line from Goose Lake – Lexington to 795 ACSS and rebuild/replace facilities as they become overloaded.

Alternative 3: Install distributed generation in the Arden Hills area to offset the power injection needs that cause the overloads.

Analysis. The new 345/115 kV substation is the most cost effective option that provides a large source for the area, but the need is too urgent to implement this option. Distributed generation was ruled out due to its cost and the fact that Alternative Two does not require any new right-ofway. To mitigate the 115 kV line overload from Goose Lake to Lexington, the rebuild to 795 ACSS was chosen.

Schedule. The selected option will be in service prior to the summer of 2010. The other overloads that were identified will continue to be monitored in annual assessments and plans will be formalized as needed.

Click here or on map below to download high resolution PDF map.