SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported) July 28, 1997
Northern States Power Company
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Minnesota
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation)
1-3034 41-0448030
(Commission File Number) (IRS Employer Identification No.)
414 Nicollet Mall 55401
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code
612-330-5500
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
Item 5. Other Events.
Viking Voyageur Gas Transmission Company, fifty percent owned by Viking Gas
Transmission Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Northern States Power
Company, a Minnesota corporation (NSP), and NICOR Inc. announced agreement on
a letter of intent to make NICOR a twenty percent owner of Viking Voyageur
and to change the terminus of the Viking Voyageur natural gas transmission
project from Volo, Illinois, to Joliet, Illinois.
Item 7. Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(c) EXHIBITS
Exhibit
No. Description
99.01 July 28, 1997 Information Release from Viking Voyageur Gas
Transmission Company
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
Northern States Power Company
(a Minnesota corporation)
By
John P. Moore, Jr.
Corporate Secretary
Dated: July 30, 1997
EXHIBIT INDEX
Method of Exhibit
Filing No. Description
DT 99.01 July 28, 1997 Information Release from
Viking Voyageur Gas Transmission Company
July 28, 1997
NICOR JOINS VIKING VOYAGEUR PROJECT
ST. PAUL, MINN. -- Viking Voyageur Gas Transmission Co. and NICOR
Inc. today announced agreement on a letter of intent to bring NICOR into
partnership with the Viking Voyageur natural gas transmission project
and change the terminus of the project from Volo to Joliet, Ill.
NICOR will become a 20 percent owner in the Viking Voyageur
project, joining partners Northern States Power Co. (40 percent) and
TransCanada PipeLines Limited (40 percent).
"We believe this project will benefit all involved parties," said
NICOR Vice President Ed Werneke. "Viking Voyageur will provide
increased ability to transport natural gas supplies from western Canada,
the largest gas-basin in North America, to the Chicago-area market hub.
Midwest consumers will benefit because the pipeline is expected to bring
increased competition among gas suppliers and improved supply
reliability."
Strong market support and NICOR's interest in promoting additional
gas delivery with Viking Voyageur (currently designed for 1.2 billion
cubic feet per day) prompted the partners to change the terminus from
Volo to Joliet to accommodate volumes of gas greater than originally
planned, according to Greg Palmer, president of Viking Gas Transmission
Co., a subsidiary of NSP. The approximately 60-mile extension of the
pipeline system is not expected to increase Viking Voyageur's projected
tolls.
"The revised route extension to Joliet provides access to NICOR's
storage and transmission facilities and may result in new storage field
development that would connect directly to the Viking Voyageur
pipeline," Palmer said.
A key feature of the Viking Voyageur project is that it will
provide economical Canadian gas to under-served markets en route to
Joliet as well.
"With several competing pipeline projects in the development stage,
we're convinced the Viking Voyageur system will provide an ideal market
connection by bringing gas into central and southeastern Wisconsin and
northern Illinois, where incremental natural gas supplies are actually
needed," NICOR's Werneke said.
In a related development, Palmer announced that Viking Voyageur is
extending to shippers an offer to submit signed precedent agreements for
the project on a first-come, first-served basis by Aug. 8. "We invite
any shippers who missed our open season to send us a signed precedent
agreement and take a place in the queue, and we'll factor the request
into our initial engineering," he said.
"We anticipate that there will be additional interest on the part
of potential shippers to participate in Viking Voyageur because of the
additional market access NICOR's involvement provides," said Wayne Lunt,
senior vice president of TransCanada PipeLines. "Our goal is to
continue enhancing the value Viking Voyageur brings to our shippers."
NSP and TransCanada announced plans in April for the Viking
Voyageur project, which extends from Emerson, Manitoba, to northern
Illinois. The line will serve markets in Minnesota, Wisconsin and
Illinois. An application for the project is expected to be filed this
fall with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
NICOR Inc. is a holding company based in Naperville, Ill. Its principal
businesses are Northern Illinois Gas, one of the nation's largest gas
distribution companies, and Tropical Shipping, a containerized shipping
business that operates between Florida and the Caribbean. NICOR also
owns several energy-related subsidiaries and is a partner in NICOR
Energy, a provider of unregulated energy products and services.
TransCanada PipeLines, Calgary, is one of North America's leading
transporters of natural gas through its energy transmission businesses.
TransCanada also operates significant complementary businesses in energy
marketing and energy processing in North America, and is extending its
operations internationally.
Northern States Power Co., Minneapolis, is a major U.S. electric and
natural gas energy company with growing domestic and international non-
regulated operations. NSP and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Northern
States Power Company-Wisconsin, operate generation, transmission and
distribution facilities providing electricity to about 1.4 million
customers in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota and
Michigan. The two companies also distribute natural gas to more than
400,000 customers in four states, and provide a variety of energy-
related services.
Viking Gas Transmission Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of NSP, owns and
operates a 495-mile interstate natural gas pipeline from Emerson,
Manitoba, to Marshfield, Wis., providing gas transportation services to
customers in the Upper Midwest. Viking's offices are located in St.
Paul, Minn.
For more information please contact:
Viking Voyageur Transmission Co.
Media Representatives
(612) 337-2167
TransCanada Pipelines Limited
Gary Davis
(403) 267-3340
NICOR, Inc.
Media: Jane Wiedmeyer
(630) 983-8676 Ext. 2844
Analysts: Randy Horn
(603) 305-9500 Ext. 2529
