Video: Xcel detonates shuttered coal power plant in Granite Falls

Xcel Energy demolished a decommissioned coal power plant Thursday in Granite Falls, Minnesota, 13 years after its closure.

The Minnesota Valley Generating Plant was a key provider of energy for over six decades, from the 1930s to the 1990s, and was tapped for overflow demand up until its retirement in 2009, according to Xcel Energy. It serviced the area between the Twin Cities and Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

The utility company contracted with Veit to place explosive charges on support structures to implode the facility.

Now, Xcel will sift through the wreckage to salvage and recycle materials. At the end of the cleanup, the site will be converted into a vegetated area.