The warning lights are flashing red for Minnesota’s energy future. A sobering new report from the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) has confirmed what energy experts have long feared: Our regional power grid faces a high risk of electricity shortfalls within the next five years. The diagnosis is stark: “Resource additions are not keeping up with generator retirements and demand growth.” This isn’t a distant threat; it’s an immediate crisis that demands immediate action.
Against this backdrop of looming power shortages, the Minnesota Legislature faces a critical choice in 2025: to continue with an outdated ban on new nuclear energy generation, or finally embrace all available tools to ensure reliable, carbon-free power for our future.
The policy landscape and political environment have aligned to create not just an opportunity, but an imperative for this long-overdue change.
The facts are clear. Energy demand across the nation is reaching record levels, according to the Energy Information Administration. Here in Minnesota, this demand will only intensify as we implement Gov. Walz’s “Clean Cars” standards, which will accelerate electric vehicle adoption across our state, and increasingly respond to the demand to locate new data centers here in our state. Meanwhile, Minnesota has committed itself to an ambitious goal of 100% carbon-free energy by 2040.
Yet remarkably, since 1994, Minnesota has maintained a “gag rule” that prevents even discussing new nuclear energy generation. This moratorium stands in stark contrast to rapidly advancing nuclear technology, particularly in the field of Advanced Small Modular Reactors (SMRs). These aren’t your grandfather’s nuclear plants – they represent cutting-edge technology that the Biden Administration’s Department of Energy has embraced as a “key part of the department’s goal to develop safe, clean, and affordable nuclear power options.”
The 2024 election results delivered a clear message: Minnesotans want their legislators to work together. With a tied House and the DFL holding just a one-seat edge in the Senate, voters have essentially mandated bipartisan cooperation. What better issue to tackle together than repealing this reactionary and counterproductive ban on nuclear energy?
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This wouldn’t be the first time the parties have found common ground on this issue. During my time in the Senate, numerous bills to repeal the nuclear moratorium garnered support from both DFL and Republican legislators. In 2008, the DFL-controlled Senate successfully passed a repeal with Republican support, though it unfortunately stalled in the House. Even more telling, in 2009, then-U.S. Rep. Tim Walz joined Republican U.S. Rep. Erik Paulsen in calling for the moratorium’s end. That was nearly 15 years after the moratorium’s passage. Sadly, 15 more years have passed without movement on this issue that would unlock safe, carbon-free, baseload energy options for Minnesota utilities and their customers.
As we face the monumental challenge of transitioning to carbon-free power while maintaining reliable service, we need every tool at our disposal. The voters have sent almost exactly equal numbers of Republicans and Democrats to St. Paul, signaling their desire for balanced, practical solutions to our energy challenges. By allowing nuclear energy to compete in the resource planning marketplace, we can demonstrate that Minnesota’s political leaders can move beyond partisan divisions to solve real problems.
The path forward is clear. We must embrace a “best of the above” approach to energy generation, letting the most effective technologies compete fairly in the marketplace. Repealing the nuclear moratorium would send a powerful message that Minnesota is serious about both clean energy and bipartisan problem-solving. With NERC’s warning of potential power shortfalls now hanging over our state, we can no longer afford to wait. After thirty years of this unnecessary ban, 2025 presents not just an opportunity, but a necessity to chart a new course for Minnesota’s energy future.
Amy Koch of Edina is a former majority leader of the Minnesota Senate. During her time in the Legislature she served on the Energy and Jobs and Economic Development committees.
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