Kevin Pranis, Marketing Manager at Laborers' International Union of North America (LiUNA) Minnesota and North Dakota, joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast and discussed Xcel Energy’s Sherco Solar Project – the largest solar project in Minnesota’s history.
LiUNA Minnesota and North Dakota has 14,000 members.
The 460 MW plant will be constructed with 100 percent union labor, he said. He estimated the plant will create about 900 construction jobs.
The project will be built alongside some of the largest coal-powered facilities in Minnesota and will take advantage of their existing infrastructure as the plants are retired, Pranis explained. The project will also help offset jobs lost in the coal industry, he added.
Pranis also talked about work coming to the area created by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, all of which will use Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) and largely employ union labor.