Since the passage of the Energy Conservation and Optimization (ECO) Act in 2021, Minnesota residents, utilities, and businesses have reaped the benefits of expanded funding to save money and energy in their natural gas and electricity use. The ECO Act builds on the previous Conservation Improvement Program (CIP) with more options for low-income households, a wider array of qualified energy-saving technologies through efficient fuel-switching (EFS), stronger conservation goals from investor-owned utilities, and more.
2025 was the the third year that Minnesota utility programs operated under ECO guidelines. These guidelines undergo rigorous reviews and amending processes to make them more practical and responsive for utilities and regulators, while maximizing benefits to consumers and the energy system. In the 2024 MN legislative session, CEE successfully supported key modifications to ECO that enabled a more practical approach to efficient fuel-switching and streamlined programs under the framework.
Just last week, the MN PUC approved new metrics for the ECO financial incentive from a proposal that CEE, the MN Department of Commerce – Division of Energy Resources, and Fresh Energy filed jointly last June. Historically, the size of the incentive has been based only on achievements in first-year energy savings and cost-effectiveness, meaning the only way for utilities to increase their incentive was to improve their performance in these areas. The newly approved 2027–2029 mechanism expands these performance metrics to better reflect the full range of policy goals and program areas covered by ECO. Utilities will now be rewarded not just for achieving first-year energy savings in cost-effective ways, but also for investing more in low-income programs, increasing the adoption of insulation measures, rebating ASHPs and other EFS measures, and more.
CEE's ongoing work with our partners to assess ECO program progress, engage stakeholders, and modify the guidelines for greater impact have made it a dynamic framework and more effective regulatory tool. Let’s look back on some of the important ECO-related work that CEE and our partners accomplished in 2024.
One-Stop Efficiency Shop
This program offers a full-service rebate program for small to midsize businesses in Xcel Energy’s Minnesota services territory, with a focus on lighting, free smart thermostat installations, rooftop unit improvements, and refrigeration. One-Stop provides practical solutions to energy efficiency challenges by addressing common barriers such as limited financial resources, lack of access to high-quality contractors, and time constraints. In 2025, One-Stop completed 1,843 projects including 696 smart thermostat installations, leading to the conservation of 13 megawatts and 59.3 gigawatt hours of energy, as well as $11 million in disbursed rebates and $6 million in annual savings for local businesses.
Learn more about the One-Stop Efficiency Shop
Home Energy Squad
CEE delivers this service for Xcel Energy and CenterPoint, which pairs on-the-spot installations of energy-saving products with an energy assessment for greater home comfort and savings. At each visit, energy experts install upgrades like LED bulbs, faucet aerators, and smart thermostats. Home Energy Squad completed over 7,200 visits in 2025 and helped save energy amounting to about 3 gigawatt hours and 29,000 decatherms. Additionally in 2025, 1,498 CenterPoint and Xcel Energy customers used the free Energy Advisor Service to complete energy efficiency projects and earn 1,767 rebates.
Learn more about the Home Energy Squad
Multifamily Energy Solutions Program
This program, provided by Minnesota Energy Resources, is designed to help multifamily building owners save energy through rebate incentives and direct installation of energy-saving products like high-efficiency showerheads and faucet aerators. Since its inception, the program has served more than 14,000 multifamily units, resulting in an average savings each year of $27 per unit on natural gas bills and an additional $11 per unit on electricity.
Learn more about our multifamily work
Regional Residential Energy Programs
Among the offerings that CEE implements for Minnesota Energy Resources, more than 50 Rochester households attended Neighbor Energy Challenge workshops, a joint program of Minnesota Energy Resources and Rochester Public Utilities that connects residents to practical energy efficiency solutions and energy audits. Additionally, CEE staff delivered over 480 energy saving kits to Minnesota Energy Resources customers at community events and manufactured home parks in Duluth, Eagan, Rochester, and Worthington.
Authorized Insulation Contractor Program
This program offers insulation and air sealing services in the region served by Minnesota Energy Resources. Participating contractors benefit from easy access to competitive utility-paid rebates. In 2025, the program completed 26 onsite quality assurance inspections and 8 remote quality assurance inspections in the form of phone interviews. The program also onboarded 7 new Authorized Insulation Contractors and held 2 single-day trainings to certify 18 new crew leaders.
Learn more about the AIC program
New Homes Single-family and Multifamily Rater Services
This program offers energy consulting and energy rater services to single-family new and existing home builders and multifamily developers. For single-family homes, the program performed a variety of energy consulting and ratings (HERS, ENERGY STAR, DOE Zero Energy Ready Homes, and Phius) for 302 homes and 95 builders. Single-family highlights include 3 Phius projects, 38 DOE Zero Energy Ready, and 64 ENERGY STAR projects. For multifamily developers, the program worked on 19 buildings with 9 builders and 11 developers covering over 500 apartment units. A variety of multifamily energy efficiency certifications were achieved for affordable housing projects, including Phius, DOE Zero Energy Ready, and ENERGY STAR in 2025. This work covered seven different utilities throughout the state.
Learn more about new construction services
Successful energy conservation requires thoughtful policies, excellent customer service, and high-quality work by a well-trained workforce. We are proud to be part of the vast ECO network that delivers programs tailored to Minnesota’s diverse communities. ECO drives our mission to strengthen the economy while improving the environment.
