The end of an era today as a locomotive that once hauled coal cars to Xcel Energy’s Riverside Plant in northeast Minneapolis, now makes a last run to its final berth at the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in downtown Duluth. Xcel’s Laura McCarten says the departure is the final chapter in the history of the Riverside Plant as a coal-fired unit, after it was converted to natural gas several years ago. McCarten says, “This power plant is one of our oldest. It’s been serving Minneapolis and has grown along with the city of Minneapolis for more than a hundred years.” Xcel still has several coal-fired plants in Minnesota: the Allen King plant in Stillwater and three units in Sherburne County. McCarten says two Sherco units will be shut down in 2023 and 2026 and replaced with a natural gas plant.