MN House votes to scrap nuclear power ban

The Prairie Island power facility
The Prairie Island power facility in Red Wing, Minn.
Photo Courtesy of the Minnesota Department of Commerce

The Minnesota House has voted to roll back a 16-year-old ban on new nuclear power plants.

The provision was added to an energy bill Thursday on a 73-59 vote. It was the first time the House has approved the proposal, which passed the Senate last year.

The rollback was offered by Rep. Bill Hilty, a Democrat who also included a measure that would keep ratepayers from paying most construction costs. They wouldn't be charged until a new nuclear plant was almost complete.

Xcel Energy lobbyist Rick Evans says Hilty's ratepayer provision would make it too costly to build a plant.

Minnesota law has prohibited the construction of new nuclear power plants since 1994.

The state has two existing plants, near Monticello and Red Wing.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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