Community sounds off at public hearing on ALLETE’s potential acquisition

A public hearing regarding ALLETE’s $6.2 billion acquisition by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) and Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP) was held Monday giving community members and stakeholders a chance to make their voices heard.They have also said the transaction will not impact rates for customers, and future rates will be monitored under state law.They say the headquarters will remain in Duluth. The transaction has unanimous approval from ALLETE’s Board of Directors and shareholders would receive $67 per share.Minnesota Power serves 150,000 customers and say they have met or exceeded Minnesota’s energy savings goal for the last 14 years.“We’ve proudly provided customers with the lowest residential electric bills in the state with near-perfect reliability of service,” said Vice President of Regulatory & Legislative Affairs, Jennifer Cady.

lack of transparency if the acquisition goes through

However, Minnesota Power customer, Linda Herron, expressed concerns about lack of transparency if the acquisition goes through.“What guarantee do we have that GIP Blackrock would work to reach our state goal of 100% carbon-free energy by 2040,” questioned Herron.She doesn’t believe a public utility should be owned by CPP.“Private equity firms focus on increasing revenues and decreasing expenditures,” said Herron.Duluth City Councilor Wendy Durrwachter echoed this sentiment and said she’s heard concerns from her constituents about the move.“There are a lot of alarms that go off with a private equity firm buying a utility,” said Durrwachter.Longtime Minnesota Power employee, Justin Riddle, supports the acquisition and said it will help them achieve their environmental goals and will strengthen the reliability of the power grid.“To ensure we are meeting our energy needs, while transitioning into a clean energy mix, we are skillfully navigating an era of rapid technological advancements,” said Riddle.