Minnesota regulators have approved a first-of-its-kind plan for the state’s largest natural gas utility to cut greenhouse gas emissions from homes and businesses over the next five years.
The plan approved by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission authorizes Houston-based CenterPoint Energy’s five-year, $106 million natural gas innovation plan, a portfolio of projects that aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1.2 million metric tons, or 14 percent from 2020 levels.
The plan was filed under the Natural Gas Innovation Act (NGIA) signed by Democratic Gov. Tim Walz in 2021 with the goal of reducing the volume of geologic gas delivered to customers. The law, which CenterPoint lobbied for, allows utilities to propose five-year plans for investments in projects that use “innovative resources” to reduce the use of gas.
That list includes hydrogen and carbon capture. It also includes renewable natural gas — substitutes for the fossil fuel derived from food waste, manure and the other decomposing organic material.
