The future of NTEC in Superior on pause

The Nemadji Trail Energy Center project has been put on pause in Superior after the Superior City Council voted not to set up any further public hearings on the project Wednesday, April 4.

The Superior Planning Commission had previously denied a rezoning request from Minnesota Power for during a meeting in March.

Superior Mayor Jim Paine spoke with WDIO on Thursday and told us at this time that nothing else can happen with the project.

“We’ve rejected that approval. There’s almost nothing else [that can] happen from the plant,” explained Mayor Paine. “This is an official rejection from the city. They can keep making request for permits and allowances from the city [but], this was one of the most basic questions they asked- ‘Can the land be used for a natural gas plant?’ and our current laws say, ‘No, it cannot.'”

Amy Rutledge, Director of Corporate Communications for ALLETE/Minnesota Power, provided WDIO with the following statement:

As a long-standing business partner in this region, we were disappointed by the lack of transparency and communication surrounding the hearing, and with the City’s disregard for conducting a fair process involving all interested parties.

We are evaluating next steps with our project partners to ensure we meet our commitment to safe, reliable and affordable power in this clean-energy transformation.