Stakeholder Engagement and Sustainability Priorities Closely Collaborating with Those We Serve and Do Business with Is Essential to How We Operate

Stakeholder Engagement and Sustainability Priorities Closely collaborating with those we serve and do business with is essential to how we operate.

As a regulated and customer-focused energy provider, we can only be successful if we have insight into the needs and priorities of those whom our business relies on and serves. We regularly engage with our stakeholders to inform our business plans and seek opportunities to better understand their interests, concerns and emerging needs.

Our business is unique in that our resource planning and other regulatory proceedings offer built-in stakeholder engagement opportunities before state public utilities commissions. Because of this, our stakeholder engagement is far-reaching and transparent with regular, ongoing business interactions, special meetings and presentations.

In addition, our account management, state and local affairs, and community relations teams engage on a daily basis. They meet with customers, city and county governments, nonprofit organizations and individuals, as well as state legislators and policymakers, to discuss important service and energy-related issues and projects. Through economic development, community involvement and supplier diversity programs, we have a strong presence and local engagement throughout our service area.

ESSENTIAL SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020 1 Xcel Energy’s stakeholders include: • Customers • Employees • Communities, including state and local government officials, nonprofit and community organizations, and advocacy groups • Legislators and regulators • Investors

How We Engage The table below outlines our ongoing engagement with stakeholders and our response to their interests.

Stakeholders Engagement Key Interests Our Response • Contact center • Ease of interactions • Digital and online tools (account • Account management • Safety management, outage map, notifications) • Personal accounts for • Reliability • Public safety outreach customers in need • Timely outage • Customer advocate response and • Energy assistance and process communication payment plans Customers • Customer research • Affordability • Relatively flat residential bills for past seven years • Communications • Energy options • Comprehensive efficiency, • Special events and and control renewable energy and electric meetings • Clean energy vehicle charging programs • Regulatory process • Information privacy • Data privacy protections

• Company-wide and • Company direction • Performance-based incentives department meetings and impact and recognition program • Bargaining unit • Market-based • Progressive non-salary and negotiations and compensation well-being benefits communications and benefits • Safety Always approach • Engagement surveys • Recognition • Professional development and discussions • Work-life balance and educational resources • Employee • Safety • Rotational assignments communications Employees • Professional • Commitment to diversity • Quarterly performance development and inclusion and development • Diverse, equitable and • Business Resource Groups discussions inclusive workplace • Effective employee • Compliance hotline • Communication communications and reporting • Community • Volunteer paid time off and involvement matching gift programs • Political action committees

• Public meetings and • Public safety • Public safety outreach, training open houses • Communication and and exercises • Participation in input on utility projects • Communication and input on city, county, state • Community giving plans and projects proceedings • Jobs and property • Xcel Energy Foundation, • Local memberships tax base company and employee giving • Speaking • Energy options and • Volunteer and community Communities engagements control board support • Individual meetings • Clean energy • Economic development outreach and support • Community giving and • Climate change sponsorships • Responsible coal plant closures • Environmental issues • Volunteer projects • Clean energy leadership • Community energy reports • Partners in Energy program • Transparent reporting

ESSENTIAL SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020 2 Stakeholders Engagement Key Interests Our Response • Participation in local, • Reliability • Strong service reliability and state and federal • Affordability storm response policy, legislative • Clean energy • Customer energy bills below action national average • Climate change • Regulatory reporting, • Continuous improvement and • Environmental filings and proceedings cost management protection Legislators • Employee political • Clean energy leadership action committees • Effective corporate and governance • Customer options for efficiency, regulators • Speaking renewable energy engagements and electric vehicle charging • Effective environmental management • Highly rated corporate governance program • Transparent reporting • Regular investor • Stock appreciation • Proven strategy and ability meetings and • Growth prospects to execute presentations • Achievement and • Track record of earnings and • Financial disclosures sustainability of dividend growth within target and press releases earnings and dividend ranges • Investor website, growth objectives • Superior total shareholder including ESG-related • Superior total returns relative to EEI peer set disclosures shareholder returns and the S&P 500 Investors • Annual shareholder • Strong financial health, • Premium utility assets meeting including credit ratings • Transparent growth plan • Financing needs • Leading ESG profile • Favorable regulatory • Strong financial profile environments and • Effective investor relations constructive outcomes communications • Transparency to risks • Effective and highly rated and mitigation corporate governance • Transparent reporting

Sustainability Priorities We revised our materiality assessment in early 2021 and updated our sustainability priority issues, focusing on what is currently most relevant to stakeholders. To inform this work, we considered what we learn from stakeholders through regular engagement. We also reviewed the following:

• Sustainability standards and frameworks, especially those tailored by industry sector, such as the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board

• Research from the Electric Power Research Institute and its Sustainability Interest Group, as well as research from our industry associations, including the Edison Electric Institute and its sustainability working group

• The priorities of our industry peers

From this research and review, we identified 16 sustainability priorities that are important to our company and its stakeholders. The revised list of topics is in line with previous sustainability priorities identified during our last materiality assessment in 2017. In the future, we plan to refresh formal research with our stakeholders to further refine and validate the revised priorities.

ESSENTIAL SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2020 3 Xcel Energy’s Sustainability Priorities Reduce air emissions (non-greenhouse gas) produced by Air Emissions generating electricity • Research, demonstration and pilots to spur the development of advanced technologies for the future, especially those needed to achieve zero-carbon electricity by 2050 and reduce the greenhouse gas footprint of natural gas use in buildings Energy Innovation • Energy resource diversity to foster reliability, mitigate risk and serve customers with cleaner and renewable energy resources • Energy efficiency and conservation • Electric vehicle charging

Environmental Reduce greenhouse gas emissions released by generating Greenhouse Gas Emissions electricity and distributing and using natural gas Maintain vitality of natural habitats and species impacted by Habitat and Biodiversity generating electricity and distributing electricity and natural gas Minimize waste produced by generating electricity and Waste distributing electricity and natural gas Water Protect water resources impacted by generating electricity • Contribute to viability and well-being of communities Community Vitality Xcel Energy serves • Support for local business and economic development Offering products and services customers value and a positive Customer Satisfaction experience • Having an equitable, inclusive workplace and a diverse workforce that reflects communities served Diversity, Equity and Inclusion • Business and community leadership to address racial inequalities and social justice Affordability of electricity and natural gas service across all Energy Affordability customer classes and geographies

Social • Reliable, secure delivery of electricity and natural gas service • Grid resiliency Reliability, Resiliency & Security • Emergency preparedness and business continuity capabilities, including physical security and cybersecurity Employee and public safety related to providing electricity and Safety natural gas service • Employee engagement, motivation and well-being • Strong hiring, retention, development, performance Workforce Management management and future workforce planning • Competitive pay and benefits, and positive labor relations • Corporate governance, adherence to laws and company policies and procedures Ethics and Compliance • Ethical expectations and commitment to human rights, values and culture Engagement in energy policy and regulation for the benefit of Public Policy customers • Supply continuity and cost management Governance • Responsible activities of suppliers doing business with Supply Chain Xcel Energy • Expanded opportunities for diverse and veteran suppliers and local businesses