Trump restores $50 million grant for Minnesota Power grid upgrade

The Trump administration has restored a $50 million federal grant to Minnesota Power after the money was first pulled, putting a key piece of the utility’s more than $900 million grid upgrade back on track. For northern Minnesota customers, including households and businesses in Beltrami County, the decision matters because the project is tied to the lines that carry power across the region.

Minnesota Power, based in Duluth and owned by ALLETE, said the grant was meant to help offset rate impacts on customers as it works on its HVDC Terminal Expansion Capability Project. The project centers on an aging high-voltage direct-current transmission system linking Hermantown and central North Dakota, a piece of infrastructure that utilities and lawmakers have warned needs modernization if the region is going to keep up with future demand and reliability concerns.

The project has been described as costing more than $900 million, with one estimate putting it as high as $940 million. Minnesota Power said the federal money was paired with a $10 million Minnesota Department of Commerce grant and a $15 million appropriation from the Minnesota Legislature in 2023. Construction on the broader effort had been expected to begin in 2024, with upgrades projected to enter service between 2028 and 2030.

State Rep. Pete Johnson said the earlier cancellation would have reached beyond a single utility award. “This week, the Trump administration announced over $7.5 billion in cuts to energy projects, including a $50 million grant for Minnesota Power that would have improved grid reliability, modernized transmission lines, helped spur clean energy innovation, and created good-paying jobs,” Johnson said. For Beltrami County, where Minnesota Power serves a large part of the electricity market, the question now is whether the restored grant will keep the project moving fast enough to deliver any relief on reliability or costs.

The reversal also lands as grid resilience has become a bigger state-level priority. In December 2025, the Minnesota Department of Commerce awarded $4.9 million in separate state grants to improve resilience against severe weather, physical attacks and cyber threats. Together, the state and federal awards show how transmission projects have moved from background infrastructure work to a front-line issue for customers watching both their bills and the stability of the power system.