Xcel Energy 2015 Annual Report Download - page 5

XCEL ENERGY | Annual Report 2015 5
EXPANDING OUR WIND PORTFOLIO
THROUGH AN OWNERSHIP STAKE
As the No. 1 utility wind energy provider for the 11th consecutive year,
Xcel Energy is continuing to build a strong portfolio of owned wind
resources to bring value to both our customers and shareholders.
We closed 2015 with the purchase of two new wind farms: the
Pleasant Valley Wind Farm near Austin, Minn., and the Border Wind
Farm in Rolette County, N.D. These additions increased wind capacity
by 20 percent in the Upper Midwest and are expected to generate
enough clean electricity to power more than 180,000 homes.
Xcel Energy is also building the Courtenay Wind Farm in central
North Dakota, which is scheduled to begin powering homes and
businesses before the end of 2016. Taking an active ownership in
building or buying wind farms positions the company to deliver 35
percent of renewable energy to our Upper Midwest customers by 2030.
Wind continues to play an increasing role in our energy portfolio.
Our Colorado energy system has the capacity for more than
2,500 megawatts of wind generation, enough to power 1.3 million
average-size homes for a year. We set a record for wind generation
in 2015 when more than half of our Colorado customers’ power for
an entire day came from wind energy, and met nearly 20 percent of
overall electric demand for the year with wind power. We are also
adding to our wind portfolio in Texas and New Mexico through power
purchase agreements.
well received by local leaders and environmental groups,
and further our position as a clean energy leader.
The Right Mix doesn’t work if you can’t deliver on price. I am
proud of our ability to transform our energy supply portfolio,
protect the environment through clean energy sources and
state-of-the-art emissions controls and invest signicantly
in our communities through jobs, tax base and economic
development—all at a competitive price.
Improve utility performance
Our assets are long lived and best optimized via a long
runway. A key objective is to establish longer-term
regulatory agreements to support just that, positioning us to
continue to close the gap between our earned and allowed
returns while creating greater price certainty for customers.
In 2015, we achieved a 9.07 percent (weather adjusted)
ongoing return on equity (ROE) for our regulated businesses,
consistent with our goal of closing the ROE gap.
Through legislation and regulatory lings, we made
signicant progress in securing longer-term frameworks. In
particular, we reached a settlement on a three-year plan in
our Colorado electric case, which had strong stakeholder
support and demonstrates the shared benets of such
plans. We also supported the enactment of new legislation
in Minnesota and Texas that provides the foundation for
more timely and holistic recovery of costs in those states.
We led a thoughtful, multi-year electric plan in Minnesota
consistent with that legislation. In December, the Minnesota
commission approved our 2016 interim rate request of
approximately $164 million, subject to refund, and will
review the plan in 2016. And our Wisconsin operating
company successfully completed a combined gas and
electric case that will bring added stability to our revenues
over time with the rst xed charge increase since 2006.
Our 2015 results demonstrate that we have a solid plan
and effective execution. We will continue to work with
stakeholders to create sound regulatory frameworks that
meet our states’ policy objectives and allow us to implement
the right energy mix for the future.
Achieve operational excellence
Historically, we have done an excellent job of managing
our operations and maintenance (O&M) expenses to deliver
increased shareholder value. In 2015, we decreased our
O&M expenses by 0.2 percent, as compared to 2014,
without impacting service levels to our customers.
We are also investing in technology to improve the function
and efciency of our business systems. An example is the
Limon III wind farm supplies power for customers in Colorado.