Sherco Unit 3, located in Becker, Minnesota, is a pulverized-coal steam unit that was put into service in 1987. SMMPA owns 41% (359 MW) of Sherco 3, which serves as the primary source of energy for SMMPA and its members.  Xcel Energy owns 59% and operates and maintains the unit on behalf of both owners. 

Standing more than 15 stories tall, Unit 3 is a spectacle unlike any other. The Unit 3 stack extends 650 feet high, and the plant’s coal barn exceeds the length of a football field.

Sherco Unit 3 is equipped with emission control technologies that meet or exceed all state and federal air quality standards. It relies on state-of-the-art air quality control technology that employs a dry scrubbing system to remove up to 90% of the sulfur dioxide and 99% of the particulates from the flue gases.