Wisconsin regulators approve MGE purchase of 9.1 MW wind project
After construction on the 92 MW Red Barn Wind Farm in Wisconsin’s Grant County is finished, the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin noted this week that Madison Gas and Electric (MGE) will be allowed to buy up 9.1 MW.
Work is scheduled to begin this year. Red Barn is being developed by PRC Wind and built by ALLETE Clean Energy. It will include 28 turbines covering 12,000 acres, and after MGE’s buy-in, the remaining 82.5 MW will be purchased by Wisconsin Public Service (WPS). With its share, MGE estimates it should be able to power the equivalent of about 4,000 households in the region.
“The Red Barn Wind Farm will help MGE to meet future energy and capacity needs cost-effectively as we continue our ongoing transition to a more sustainable energy supply. We are working every day toward net-zero carbon electricity by 2050 for all our customers,” Jeff Keebler, MGE chairman, president and CEO, said. “We have said since announcing our net-zero goal, if we can go further faster through partnerships with our customers and the evolution of new technologies, we will.”
The farm should be operational by year’s end. For MGE, the influx of new power will support an ongoing mission to reduce its carbon emissions at least 65 percent by 2030 and add nearly 400 MW of renewable energy sources by 2024.
