Gov't To Pay Xcel $100M To Settle Lawsuit
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Xcel Energy says it has reached a $100 million settlement with the federal government over costs the company incurred because the Department of Energy failed to remove used nuclear fuel by a 1998 deadline.
The company says Friday that the government will pay for used fuel storage costs at Prairie Island and Monticello nuclear generating plants sustained through 2008 and for costs from 2009 to 2013.
The money will be returned to customers in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota and Michigan. The company says it will soon make regulatory filings about how it plans to return the money.
A company spokeswoman says Xcel has about 1.6 million customers in the five states and the typical residential customer will see a benefit of about $20.
The settlement resolves two cases, including federal lawsuit Xcel won in 2007 that was on appeal.
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