The Guardian exposes risks of BlackRock’s Minnesota utility takeover
September 8, 2025
A new Guardian spotlight has thrown light on the dangers of Wall Street’s growing push into public utilities. The piece highlights BlackRock’s $6.2 billion bid to acquire Minnesota Power’s parent company, Allete. Opponents warn the deal could drive up household energy bills while undermining Minnesota’s clean energy transition.
“This proposal looks to be a classic private equity play: buy, own for a few years, and then sell at a profit,” Brett Christophers, author of Our Lives in Their Portfolios, told the Guardian. “Money will only be invested in decarbonizing Minnesota Power if [Global Infrastructure Partners] thinks the market will reward it when it comes time to exit”
PESP’s Communications Director Matt Parr told the Guardian:
“Utilities make money by investing in new energy infrastructure. With huge power demand comes huge ability to profit, especially if there’s an environment where utility commissions are approving rate increases.”
He warned that if Minnesota regulators approve the deal, it could “open the floodgates” for private equity firms eyeing utilities nationwide.
Despite BlackRock’s sustainability claims, the firm’s record tells a different story. Parr noted that Global Infrastructure Partners, the private equity arm driving the deal, remains a major investor in a south Texas gas terminal and other fossil fuel projects. Those investments show the firm is still deeply tied to fossil fuels, raising serious doubts that BlackRock would help Minnesota reach its legally mandated goal of 100% carbon-free electricity by 2040.
Local voices are also sounding the alarm. “If the deal goes through, it will force ratepayers to be beholden to the private equity agenda: prioritizing profits for executives while rising prices for everyday people,” said Jenna Yeakle, campaign manager with the Sierra Club. Cody Pals of the Duluth Tenants Union added: “These capitalist vultures do not have our best interests at heart.”
Minnesota’s Administrative Law Judge has already recommended rejecting the proposal. She found that Global Infrastructure Partners “has not met their burden of proof to show the transaction is consistent with the public interest.” The judge pointed to evidence that the firm plans “significant rate increases” beyond inflation.
The Guardian spotlight underscores what’s at stake: a decision that could set a precedent for utility ownership nationwide. It could hand over public control of critical energy infrastructure to Wall Street firms whose loyalty lies not with consumers, but with profit.
Read the whole Guardian story here: theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/08/blackrock-minnesota-power-sale-allete
