An overhead photos of new solar panel installation on top of Broadway Haus apartments. The apartment unit has 124 panels installed on the roof and is the largest solar system interconnected to New Ulm’s electrical system. Photo by Foresee Studios

NEW ULM – As of 2025, New Ulm has 36 solar power generating systems connected to the city’s electrical grid.

Seven of the 36 units were added in the last year. The largest is a 50 kilowatt (kW) system located atop Broadway Haus.

This information was provided to New Ulm’s Public Utilities Commissioner (PUC) Tuesday. Energy Service Representative Derek Nelson gave the commissioner the 2024 annual distributed energy resource report. Under state statutes electric utilities must file a report listing the new Distributed Energy Resources (DER) that were connected to the grid within the last year or disconnected in the last year. The report must also identify the capacity of each DER.

A DER is considered a small-scale electricity generation and storage system. Nelson said any outside energy source that is connected to the city’s grid is considered a DER. In New Ulm, this currently only applies to solar energy systems.

“It is always good for the city to know [DERs] are located,” Nelson said. This information helps determine how much power capacity is available.

The first solar generator interconnected to New Ulm’s grid was in 2006. This solar system was located at the former Putting Greens site and was a 1 kW system. It was decommissioned in 2018 and is the only solar power system to be disconnected from New Ulm’s system. The other 36 interconnections remain active. Nelson said of these 36 active systems, three have expanded in size after first being connected.

During the report, PUC commissioner Seth Visser asked if the seven new interconnected sites added in 2024 represented a larger than normal expansion.

Nelson said in recent years he anticipated four or five new interconnected sites, but this year was unique because all seven interconnections belonged to the New Ulm Economic Development Authority (EDA).

Last year, the EDA installed 260 solar panels across its public housing property with 136 panels going on rental homes and 124 panels going on the Broadway Haus roof. Nelson confirmed the 50 kW system on Broadway Haus is the largest in New Ulm. The next largest solar system is a 39.99 kW unit.

Following the DER report, the commission approved the rate schedule that determines how much public utilities will pay for extra power generated by renewable energy installations in 2025.

State statutes require municipal utilities to provide a co-generation and small power production rate to promote renewable energies like solar power.

This rate is for generators of less than 40 kW and is adjusted on an annual basis. The change to the payment per kilo watt-hour (kWh) for energy delivered to the New Ulm Public Utilities is as follows:

• Residential rate changed from $0.1347 per kWh to $0.1435 per kWh

• Small Commercial rate changed from $0.1271 per kWh to $0.1369 per kWh

• Large Commercial rate changed from $0.0990 per kWh to $0.1097 per kWh

The commission also approved a cost increase for the initial service connection to New Ulm’s system. Coordination of interconnection increased from $225 to $450. The commissioning and travel cost also increased, going from $275 to $550.

The commissioners noted that interconnection costs were a one time expense when the new DER is connected to the electrical grid.