Opposition of Minnesota Power Sale Host Press Conference

DULUTH, Minn. — Opposition of the potential sale of Minnesota Power held a press conference today

This is the latest response to the news of Minnesota Power and Allete’s potential acquisition by Global Infrastructure Partners, a BlackRock company, and C.P.P. Investments.
The sale, which would take Minnesota Power off the publicly owned market, is seeing opposition from groups like The Sierra Club, CURE, and the Duluth Tenants Union,
all of whom were represented at the press conference, alongside Minnesota State Senator Jen McEwen.

“What happens to Minnesota Power affects all of us, both in terms of the rates we’re paying for the basic public good of electric service, and also in terms of the economic well-being, of our friends, our family, our neighbors, maybe ourselves, if we’re working with or for Minnesota Power.” said McEwen. “So, this proposed sale does affect the entire community and will have ramifications on our entire community.”

In a separate interview, Matt Baumgartner, the President of the Duluth Chamber of Commerce who has voiced support for the acquisition, reassured that the commitment to the area is firm, regardless of ownership.

“What is changing is just the holding company of global infrastructure partners. Their whole team is still in place. We’ve had a chance to meet with them. We’ve met with Canadian pension plan. They share the same vision and values that Allete does, and that was the benefit of elite being able to choose their partners.” said Baumgartner. “So, it is not all of a sudden, Black Rock is invested in Allete. They have been for a long time.”

Following the press conference, Minnesota Power released a statement that reads:

“Minnesota Power has been working closely with our stakeholders over the last year and a half to ensure that our proposed partnership with CPP Investments and Global Infrastructure Partners provides benefits to our customers, communities and employees. Through these collaborative efforts, we reached a landmark agreement with the Minnesota Department of Commerce that addresses the feedback we received through this process while delivering additional cost savings for customers, additional public protections and guaranteed funding for clean energy infrastructure.

“We are proud that a growing coalition of support—from the Minnesota Department of Commerce to clean energy advocates, business leaders, organized labor unions and community groups recognizes that this partnership is in the best interest of customers and puts us in the best possible position to meet Minnesota’s clean energy goals.”

The sale still has to clear the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission and will remain a publicly owned company until then.