SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                             WASHINGTON, DC 20549






                                   FORM 8-K
                                CURRENT REPORT






    Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934






     DATE OF REPORT (DATE OF EARLIEST EVENT REPORTED) - December 21, 2001







                                 ALLETE, Inc.


                            A Minnesota Corporation
                          Commission File No. 1-3548
                  IRS Employer Identification No. 41-0418150
                            30 West Superior Street
                         Duluth, Minnesota 55802-2093
                          Telephone - (218) 279-5000







ITEM 5.  OTHER EVENTS.

Reference is made to the 2000 Form 10-K of ALLETE, Inc. (ALLETE) for background
information on the following update.

Ref. Page 43 - Tenth Paragraph
Ref. Form 8-K dated and filed September 24, 2001

On December 21, 2001 ALLETE announced its wholly owned  subsidiary  ALLETE Water
Services,  Inc.  (ALLETE  Water  Services)  has agreed to extend an  exclusivity
agreement with the Florida  Governmental Utility Authority (FGUA) to clarify and
finalize  terms of a  potential  sale of Florida  Water  Services  Corporation's
(Florida  Water)  assets.  Florida Water is a wholly owned  subsidiary of ALLETE
Water Services.

Initially, ALLETE Water Services had given the FGUA a December 21, 2001 deadline
to complete a cooperative investigation to reach a mutually acceptable agreement
to purchase all the water, wastewater and water reuse assets of Florida Water.

During the extended  period,  which  expires on January 11,  2002,  ALLETE Water
Services  has agreed that it will not explore  other  purchase  options or begin
discussions with other companies that have expressed  interest in purchasing the
company's assets.



                    ALLETE Form 8-K dated December 21, 2001                    1


                              SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT
           UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995

In  connection  with  the  safe  harbor  provisions  of the  Private  Securities
Litigation  Reform Act of 1995,  ALLETE is hereby filing  cautionary  statements
identifying important factors that could cause ALLETE's actual results to differ
materially from those projected in  forward-looking  statements (as that term is
defined in the Private  Securities  Litigation Reform Act of 1995) made by or on
behalf of ALLETE which are made in this Form 8-K, in presentations,  in response
to questions or otherwise.  Any statements that express,  or involve discussions
as to, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or future events or
performance (often, but not always,  through the use of words or phrases such as
"anticipates,"   "believes,"   "estimates,"   "expects,"   "intends,"   "plans,"
"projects,"  "will likely result," "will continue" or similar  expressions)  are
not statements of historical facts and may be forward-looking.

Forward-looking statements involve estimates,  assumptions and uncertainties and
are  qualified in their  entirety by reference to, and are  accompanied  by, the
following   important   factors,   which  are  difficult  to  predict,   contain
uncertainties,  are beyond the control of ALLETE and may cause actual results to
differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements:

     -    war and acts of terrorism;

     -    prevailing  governmental  policies and regulatory  actions,  including
          those of the United States Congress,  state legislatures,  the Federal
          Energy   Regulatory   Commission,   the  Minnesota   Public  Utilities
          Commission,  the Florida Public Service Commission, the North Carolina
          Utilities  Commission,  the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin and
          various county regulators, about allowed rates of return, industry and
          rate  structure,  acquisition  and disposal of assets and  facilities,
          operation and construction of plant facilities,  recovery of purchased
          power and capital  investments,  and present or prospective  wholesale
          and retail  competition  (including  but not  limited to  transmission
          costs);

     -    economic and  geographic  factors,  including  political  and economic
          risks;

     -    changes in and  compliance  with  environmental  and  safety  laws and
          policies;

     -    weather conditions;

     -    population growth rates and demographic patterns;

     -    competition for retail and wholesale customers;

     -    pricing and transportation of commodities;

     -    market demand, including structural market changes;

     -    changes in tax rates or policies or in rates of inflation;

     -    changes in project costs;

     -    unanticipated changes in operating expenses and capital expenditures;

     -    capital market conditions;

     -    competition for new energy development opportunities; and

     -    legal and administrative  proceedings  (whether civil or criminal) and
          settlements that affect the business and profitability of ALLETE.


Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which that statement
is made,  and ALLETE  undertakes  no  obligation  to update any  forward-looking
statement  to  reflect  events or  circumstances  after  the date on which  that
statement is made or to reflect the  occurrence  of  unanticipated  events.  New
factors  emerge  from  time to time and it is not  possible  for  management  to
predict  all of those  factors,  nor can it assess  the  impact of each of those
factors  on the  businesses  of ALLETE or the  extent  to which any  factor,  or
combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those
contained in any forward-looking statement.

2                   ALLETE Form 8-K dated December 21, 2001




                                   SIGNATURES


Pursuant  to the  requirements  of the  Securities  Exchange  Act of  1934,  the
registrant  has duly  caused  this  report  to be  signed  on its  behalf by the
undersigned thereunto duly authorized.





                                               ALLETE, Inc.





December 21, 2001                            James K. Vizanko
                           -----------------------------------------------------
                                             James K. Vizanko
                                  Vice President, Chief Financial Officer
                                              and Treasurer




                    ALLETE Form 8-K dated December 21, 2001                    3