MINNEAPOLIS (Oct. 10, 2025) — Workers at Xcel Energy’s Prairie Island Nuclear Plant began a weeks-long refueling and maintenance effort today, allowing the facility to continue providing reliable, carbon-free energy for more than one million customers throughout the Upper Midwest and remain an economic engine for the region.

During the refueling, nearly 500 specialists will join the plant’s full-time workforce. This provides a significant boost to the economies of Goodhue County and the surrounding region. The work helps set up the plant for a future extension of its operations, which will play an important part in achieving Minnesota’s clean energy goals.

“Nuclear energy is essential to achieving Minnesota’s vision to power communities with 100% carbon-free electricity by 2040,” said Ryan Long, president, Xcel Energy – Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. “Our continued investment in nuclear ensures we can provide reliable, always-available clean energy to customers across the Upper Midwest for many years to come.”

Refueling happens every two years for each of the two units at Prairie Island. While Prairie Island’s Unit 2 is out of service, refueling and plant maintenance will improve equipment and plant reliability and help ensure that the plant continues to provide safe, clean and reliable power to the region. During this outage, Unit 1 will continue operations to provide electricity to customers.

Together, Prairie Island and Xcel Energy’s nuclear plant at Monticello provide 23% of the total electricity that the company’s customers use in the Upper Midwest.

Committed to clean, reliable energy

Plant maintenance makes it possible to extend Prairie Island’s operating life and renew Xcel Energy’s investment and commitment to the surrounding region. Earlier this year, the company received approval from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to extend the plant’s operations through the early 2050s. The Commission also unanimously voted to approve Xcel Energy’s application for increased storage of spent fuel at the site.

The company plans to request a 20-year extension of the plant’s operating licenses from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2026. The federal review process is extensive, typically taking 18-24 months, and is focused on ensuring safe and reliable operations.

“Every refueling outage at our nuclear plants is a major undertaking that hinges on precision and preparation,” said Chris Church, senior vice president, Chief Nuclear Officer. “This work not only keeps Prairie Island operating at peak performance, but also ensures we continue delivering dependable, carbon-free energy to our customers and contributing to the vitality of the region.”

In recent years, Xcel Energy’s nuclear team has taken steps to save money for customers. The company has implemented an innovative process for temporarily reducing nuclear generation overnight on certain days when low-cost wind resources are abundant. The nuclear team has also reduced production costs at its nuclear plants by 25% over the past decade.

Supporting our communities

Xcel Energy’s nuclear plants are economic drivers for the communities they operate in. The skilled workers and contractors who work at the plant during refueling outages provide a boost to the area’s economy. Restaurants, hotels and service providers are often booked with traveling workers, many of whom return to the area for each refueling.

The nuclear industry supports good-paying, stable jobs with salaries that can be 30% higher than the local average, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. The Prairie Island plant is one of Red Wing’s biggest employers and local taxpayers.

A recent analysis performed by the University of Colorado concluded that extending the operating license of the company’s nuclear power plants by 20 years yields a net economic benefit to Minnesota and the surrounding communities. It estimates on average an additional 896 jobs and an increase in gross domestic product of $335 million a year.

Nuclear energy is extremely reliable. Xcel Energy’s plants typically run year-round, and regularly operate uninterrupted through a polar vortex or a heat wave, only shutting down to refuel the reactor. During the refueling, about one-third of the fuel in the reactor core will be replaced. Meanwhile, skilled technicians will do tens of thousands of hours of inspection and maintenance that ensure the safe and efficient operation of the plant.

Learn more about Xcel Energy’s nuclear fleet here.

# # #

About Xcel Energy

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ: XEL) is a leading energy provider, dedicated to serving millions of customers with excellence. We make energy work better for customers, helping them thrive every day. That means always raising the bar — delivering better service and providing more reliable, resilient and sustainable energy.

We are committed to leading the clean energy transition, meeting our customers’ need for more, cleaner power, while keeping bills as low as possible. Because the people we serve depend on us to power their lives.

Headquartered in Minneapolis, we work every day to generate and distribute electricity and gas to customers across eight states: Minnesota, Colorado, Wisconsin, Michigan, North Dakota, South Dakota, New Mexico and Texas. For more information, visit xcelenergy.com or follow us on X and Facebook.