An Xcel Energy refund plan, if approved by regulators, will deliver $318 million back to Minnesota customers, the utility announced Monday. The proposed refund would mark the first time customers see savings from the federal tax credits on energy generated by Xcel's nuclear fleet.

Xcel Energy on Monday proposed refunding Minnesota customers $318 million as the first use of a federal nuclear energy tax credit passed in 2022.

Xcel officials are proposing returning $318 million to customers in the state. According to a news release, more than half of the refund ($176 million) comes from federal tax credits for nuclear energy generation, with the remainder of the refund coming from lower fuel costs and a 2011 outage at the Sherco coal plant.