Vice President & President of Allete Clean Energy, Allete
Search every verified Nicole Johnson interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Nicole Johnson, vice president at Allete and president of its subsidiary Allete Clean Energy, appeared on the podcast "Lightskinn Pod" in December 2024. She discussed her role in helping to create Allete Clean Energy, which she described as a wind company that develops, owns, and operates large wind farms across seven states. Johnson stated that across Allete's family of companies, the approach is "all of the above energy," including wind, solar, hydro, biomass, and some fossil-based energy, while continuing to look for the cleanest, most affordable, and reliable forms of power. She noted that Minnesota has a ban on building nuclear power and that some are questioning whether that ban should be lifted for small modular nuclear reactors to help meet carbon-free goals, while also acknowledging that hesitation around nuclear energy often relates to concerns about spent fuel disposal. Johnson added that coal mining remains a significant part of Allete's operations through a sister company in North Dakota. Johnson also commented on the company's internal culture, saying that Allete provides opportunities for employees to have multiple careers without leaving the company by encouraging movement across different business units. Reflecting on her own career, she advised her younger self not to be afraid to take chances, even without checking all the boxes, and to raise her hand, work hard, and be a good teammate.
“When the company was deciding to create a new company which was later going to be called ALLETE Clean Energy, they had just a handful of people that they wanted to get this company off the ground and I was one of them to do that.”
“ALLETE Clean Energy is currently a wind company with operations in seven states; we develop, own, and operate large wind farms.”
“Across our family of companies, we really talk about all of the above energy because it's going to all be needed as they serve different needs. We have wind, solar, hydro, biomass, including some fossil-based energy, and we're continuing to look at what provides the best energy in the cleanest form that's affordable an...”
“In the state of Minnesota, there's actually a ban on building nuclear power, and people are asking if that ban should be lifted, maybe not for old nuclear but for small modular nuclear reactors, because to meet carbon-free goals, we're going to need something to provide reliable power when the wind's not blowing and th...”
We are joined this week by Nicole Johnson, President of ALLETE Clean Energy. We discuss her path to President of ALLETE ...
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