Electricity Transmission and Distribution
Minnesota has vast renewable energy production potential that can drive strong economic development in rural areas. Yet our overloaded, inefficient, and inaccessible transmission system presents major biggest barriers to new wind and other renewable energy projects. Thousands of megawatts of renewable energy projects in Minnesota and around the country face long wait times and high cost barriers to connecting to the electric grid. America needs a modernized transmission grid that will carry Minnesota's wind power to load centers around the country. Additionally, policymakers must ensure that small-scale and community-owned energy projects do not face discriminatory policies in connecting to the grid. These are all issues that Senator Franken will be working on as a member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
