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Natural Gas Wholesale Commodity Prices Increase; Xcel Explains How Customers Can Save Energy and Money

The price of natural gas affects both natural gas service and electric service because natural gas is also used to generate electricity. The cost of natural gas is paid directly by customers without any markup from Xcel Energy.

Wholesale natural gas prices continue to increase, hitting a fifteen year high. The wholesale price of natural gas was also higher than anticipated in the third quarter, leading to an under-collection from electric customers.

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Alliant Energy named a Top Utility in Economic Development

Site Selector Magazine has announced that for the fourth consecutive year Alliant Energy has earned their Top Utility in Economic Development honor. The annual list recognizes the company for its contributions to local community development and job creation.   

In its September issue, Site Selection credits Alliant Energy’s economic development team, in collaboration with local, regional and state economic development partners in Iowa and Wisconsin, for delivering more than $2.1 billion in new capital investment and creating more than 4,400 new jobs in 2021.  

Alliant Energy is one of twenty companies nationally named to the list and the only one in Iowa. In all, there are 3,300 utility companies, including 900 electric cooperatives, in the United States. 

XCEL ENERGY RECEIVES APPROVAL FOR MINNESOTA’S LARGEST SOLAR PROJECT TO REPLACE COAL GENERATION

Xcel Energy will move forward to build Minnesota’s largest-ever solar project at the Sherco plant site in Becker, as it transitions away from using coal at the site in the coming years. Today, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) provided the final approvals needed for Sherco Solar, which is a key component of Xcel Energy’s plan to nearly triple the amount of solar on its Upper Midwest system by 2028.

In addition to being the largest single solar development in Minnesota, the Upper Midwest and among the largest in the United States, Sherco Solar will provide clean energy while also being the lowest-cost solar on Xcel Energy’s Upper Midwest system. It will also create jobs and investment in the Becker community as the Sherco coal plant is retired in the coming years. The solar project will serve as a direct replacement for most of the capacity of the first coal unit retiring at the Sherco plant.

SECOND QUARTER 2022 EARNINGS | MGE, WEC, Alliant,

MGE Energy has reported second-quarter earnings of $21.8 million.
The company had net income of sixty cents per share. It posted revenue of $152.3 million in the period.


 

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SECOND QUARTER 2022 EARNINGS | XCEL

Xcel Energy reaffirms 2022 EPS earnings guidance range of $3.10 to $3.20.

Xcel Energy has reported 2022 second quarter GAAP and ongoing earnings of $328 million, or $0.60 per share, compared with $311 million, or $0.58 per share in the same period in 2021. Earnings reflect capital investment recovery and other regulatory outcomes, partially offset by higher depreciation, interest expense and operating and maintenance (O&M) expenses.

“We had a solid quarter and as a result we are reaffirming our 2022 earnings guidance of $3.10 to $3.20 per share,” said Bob Frenzel, Chairman, President and CEO of Xcel Energy. “We achieved a significant regulatory milestone with approval of our Colorado Electric Resource Plan. Executing this plan and our Power Pathway transmission project will secure affordable, resilient, clean energy for our customers, reducing carbon emissions eighty-five percent in the state by 2030, generating eighty percent of electricity from renewable sources by the same year and retiring all coal generation in the state by January 1, 2031.”

Xcel Energy was also recently honored with several leadership awards, being inducted into the Climate Leadership Hall of Fame and receiving the Hubert H. Humphrey Public Leadership Award for ground breaking sustainability goals.

XCEL ENERGY TAKES STEP TO ADD SIGNIFICANT CARBON-FREE ENERGY TO ITS UPPER MIDWEST SYSTEM

To help move the clean energy transition forward, Xcel Energy has announced it is seeking proposals to add significant carbon-free energy for its customers in the Upper Midwest through new renewable energy projects and energy storage projects. The company is seeking proposals from developers for at least 900 megawatts of electric generation to meet customers’ energy needs and help the company reduce carbon emissions by eighty-five percent in the region by 2030, compared to 2005, as it moves toward its vision of providing one hundred percent carbon-free electricity to customers by 2050.

As the company works to implement its recently approved Upper Midwest Energy Plan, this request calls for new solar projects, or solar projects with energy storage. The company aims to have about 300 megawatts of the new energy resources connect to the grid at the Sherco plant site in Sherburne County, Minnesota, to bring clean energy to the region as the coal plant is retired in phases beginning in 2023.

Under the company’s Upper Midwest Energy plan, more than eighty percent of customers’ electricity in the region would be carbon free by the end of the decade, with more than half coming from wind and solar. These projects will help move those plans forward. The plan calls for retiring all the company’s Upper Midwest coal plants by 2030, dramatically increasing wind and solar energy, and ensuring reliable, affordable energy by extending the generation of carbon-free nuclear energy at the Monticello plant for an additional 10 years, to 2040.

INFLATION REDUCTION ACT – ENERGY ISSUES

Most economists agree that the recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act will not actually impact inflation but it does contain provisions that will have a major impact on the energy industry including electric utilities. More than half of the spending in the bill - $385 billion – goes to climate and energy spending and tax breaks over the next five to ten years.

The bill includes extending the solar investment tax credit of 30% through 2033, extending the wind production tax credit through 2033, creation of a $30 billion loan/grant program to decarbonize the grid, creation of a interstate transmission line grant program and a new credit for qualified nuclear facilities. The bill also contains provisions designed to stimulate hydrogen production and a $7,500 tax credit to buy new electric vehicles along with a $4,000 credit for lower/middle income taxpayers to buy used electric vehicles.

Many of these provisions will benefit electric utilities. Look for a more detailed analysis in the next edition of the Voice.

ALLIANT ENERGY COMPLETES KOHLER, SHEBOYGAN SOLAR PROJECTS

Two Alliant Energy Customer-Hosted Renewables projects, the City of Sheboygan Solar Field and Kohler Solar Field, both recently became operational. The two projects highlight the flexibility of the Alliant Energy Customer-Hosted Renewables program, working with both public and private customers to make meaningful advancements in clean energy. In total, the projects could generate enough power for roughly 760 homes annually at maximum output.
“We are pleased to advance our transition to clean energy with the completion of the city of Sheboygan and Kohler solar projects,” according to David de Leon, President of Alliant Energy’s Wisconsin energy company. “Sheboygan-area residents will have access to the energy generated from these solar fields – just another example of how we keep customers at the heart of everything we do.”
The City of Sheboygan Solar Field utilizes land at the Sheboygan Business Center for a 1-MW solar project. The city will showcase the benefits of clean energy while receiving lease payments for twenty-five years.

XCEL ENERGY PROPOSES EXPANDING ELECTRIC VEHICLE PROGRAMS AND HIGH-SPEED PUBLIC CHARGING

To help drive toward the future of clean transportation, Xcel Energy is proposing new and enhanced electric vehicle charging programs and high-speed public charging options in Wisconsin and Minnesota to make charging at home and on the go easy, fast and more affordable for all customers. The plan also includes new EV programs and solutions supporting businesses, multifamily buildings, community charging, transit and electric school buses.
“Interest in EVs continues to grow and the expansion of both private and public charging will help customers address range anxiety and achieve significant savings on their transportation costs while delivering cleaner air for everyone,” according to Mark Stoering, President, Xcel Energy-Wisconsin and Michigan.
This current proposal dramatically increases the number of public EV charging stations in the region, making it easier for drivers to charge on the go, by potentially adding 750 high-speed charging stations across Wisconsin and Minnesota. The company will work with interested communities and site hosts on locations for charging stations in both urban and rural areas, particularly along interstates, state highways and other traffic corridors.
The proposal also enhances the successful EV Accelerate at Home program, which provides a turn-key option working with local electricians to install a home charger, in both states to better meet customers’ needs and expands programs and charger options to help businesses provide EV charging for employees, renters, fleet vehicles and the public.
”Transportation is the largest source of carbon emissions in the U.S., and our plan supports Minnesota’s target of having 20% of light duty vehicles in our state be electric by 2030 – not only because it reduces emissions and delivers cleaner air, but because charging an EV at home is the equivalent of about a $1 per gallon when charging overnight,” said Chris Clark, president, Xcel Energy Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. “This means real savings for drivers and, importantly, our plan positions both Xcel Energy and the Upper Midwest as a national leader in accessible, affordable charging options through innovative customer programs and infrastructure.”

WISCONSIN UTILITIES EXPECT TO SPEND MORE THAN $2B ON NEW TRANSMISSION

Utilities and renewable advocates say the projects will aid the clean energy transition, but some consumer groups have expressed concerns about the costs. Three new transmission lines that are estimated to cost around $2.2 billion will cross through Wisconsin under a large expansion approved by the Midwest grid operator that’s designed to facilitate the clean energy transition.

The Board of the Midcontinent Independent System Operator signed off on a $10.3 billion portfolio of 18 transmission projects for the Upper Midwest on July 25. The lines are expected to support 53 gigawatts of renewable energy and provide between $23 to $52 billion in benefits as utilities retire aging coal plants. Projects in Wisconsin are slated to start coming online as early as 2028.

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MGE to Reduce Carbon Eighty Percent by 2030

Consistent with its commitment to sustainable energy and to global climate science, Madison Gas and Electric will reduce carbon at least eighty percent by 2030 as it works toward achieving net-zero carbon electricity by 2050. Under its Energy 2030 framework, announced in 2015, the company set a goal of forty percent carbon reduction by 2030, one of the first such goals set by a utility and in alignment with the Paris Agreement on climate change. 

Since then, the company has said it fully expects to achieve carbon reductions of at least sixty-five percent by 2030. In 2019, MGE established its goal of net-zero carbon electricity by mid-century, consistent with climate science from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and analysis of the company’s goal by the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies

Six More Solar Farms Approved for Alliant Energy in Central Wisconsin, Enough to Power 100,000 Homes

Alliant Energy is about to begin construction on six new solar projects in central Wisconsin that will generate enough electricity to power about 100,000 homes annually once completed. The utility has received approval for the projects from the Public Service Commission. 

The projects are Albany Solar in Green County, Beaver Dam Solar in Dodge County, Cassville Solar in Grant County, Paddock Solar in Rock County, Springfield Solar in Dodge County and Wautoma Solar in Waushara County. 

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XCEL ENERGY IS FIRST IN THE NATION WITH ALL-ELECTRIC BUCKET TRUCKS

Xcel Energy is taking the next steps in its journey toward electric transportation by becoming the first energy company in the nation to add all-electric bucket trucks to its fleet. Xcel Energy crews will use these new, quiet, zero-emissions trucks as they maintain the electric system and respond to outages after storms.  

Alliant Helps Hollandale Get Faster Internet Speeds

Broadband service is about to get a major boost in Hollandale, Wisconsin, a rural community about 30 miles southwest of Madison. Alliant Energy and Mt. Horeb Telephone Company have announced a new partnership to expand high-speed internet service to nearly 150 households and businesses. Once expanded, customers will have access to up to 2,000 Mbps/2,000 Mbps (2-gigabit internet service).

Xcel Energy Elects New Board Member

 

  Xcel Energy has announced that has been elected to the company’s Board of Directors effective immediately. Burkhart is an accomplished executive with decades of experience in human resources compensation, culture, and diversity, equity and inclusion. She currently serves as Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer at Comerica Incorporated, a major financial services company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. She is responsible for leading the bank’s people strategy and organization for the $94 billion company. Prior to her current role, Burkhart served as Senior Vice president and Director of Compensation. She joined Comerica in 1997.

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Xcel Energy Foundation Provides More Than $300,000 in Grants

The Xcel Energy Foundation has announced it has awarded $305,000 to fifty-eight nonprofits in Wisconsin and Michigan to help provide funding for critical programs in their communities.

“At Xcel Energy we’re doing our part to support our customers and communities,” said Mark Stoering, president of Xcel Energy, Wisconsin and Michigan. “Our mission is to provide our customers safe, clean, reliable energy services, but we also know that the quality of life in our communities is equally important to their continued success.”

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US DOJ Appeals Ruling Blocking Transmission Line

The U.S. Department of Justice is appealing a federal judge’s ruling that blocked a controversial transmission line’s crossing through the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife Refuge.  

The U.S. DOJ filed the appeal June 8 on behalf of federal agencies that granted approvals for the 345-kilovolt Cardinal-Hickory Creek Transmission Line. American Transmission Company, ITC Midwest and Dairyland Power Cooperative are building the line that would run 101 miles from Dane County to Dubuque County in Iowa.

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American Transmission Company Appoints New Board Member and Treasurer

American Transmission Company has announced that Scott J. Lauber, President and Chief Executive Officer of WEC Energy Group, has joined ATC’s Board of Directors, replacing J. Kevin Fletcher who retired from WEC Energy Group on June 1, 2022. Eric Lundberg, ATC’s Vice President of Finance, was named the company’s Treasurer, a title previously held by Mike Hofbauer, ATC’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

Lauber was named President and CEO of WEC Energy Group and appointed to the company’s Board of Directors in February 2022. He became President — We Energies, Wisconsin Public Service, Michigan Gas Utilities and Minnesota Energy Resources in January 2022, and President, Upper Michigan Energy Resources in February 2022. In the president roles, Lauber is responsible for business operations for WEC Energy Group’s utilities in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota. Lauber joined Wisconsin Energy Corporation in 1990 and has held positions of increasing responsibility, including financial manager, distribution operations, and manager, corporate accounting and budgeting.

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KEWAUNEE NUCLEAR POWER SALE APPROVED

Wisconsin regulators have approved the sale of a shuttered nuclear plant, leaving hundreds of millions of ratepayer dollars in the hands of a private contractor. 

The Public Service Commission voted unanimously Wednesday, May 25 to allow Dominion Energy to sell the Kewaunee Nuclear Power Plant to Utah-based EnergySolutions for an undisclosed sum. EnergySolutions will also get about $835 million set aside to cover the cost of decommissioning the 49-year-old plant.

The commission rejected arguments from consumer advocates who said the deal lacked provisions that could return some $285 million to customers of Alliant Energy and Wisconsin Public Service Corporation. 

Any unused funds in the decommissioning trust are to be returned to ratepayers, but the deal doesn’t cap expenses, giving EnergySolutions discretion over how the money is spent. 



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CARDINAL-HICKORY CREEK LINE CONTROVERSY CONTINUES

Utilities building a controversial power line through southwest Wisconsin say supply chain issues and ongoing court battles have added more than $49 million to the price tag.

As required under the construction permit, the owners of the Cardinal-Hickory Creek line notified the Public Service Commission Friday that the cost would exceed the authorized $492 million price tag by more than ten percent. They say the total cost is now unknown.

The PSC permit does not require additional approval for price overruns. “Rising costs are presently a reality in all industries, and the Cardinal-Hickory Creek project is no exception,“ according to Alissa Braatz, a spokesperson for American Transmission Company, one of the line’s three co-owners.

Meanwhile, opponents of the line between Dubuque, Iowa, and Middleton, Wisconsin, are asking a federal appeals court to temporarily halt construction on either side of the Mississippi River while the court considers whether the line can cross the river as planned.