Madison Gas and Electric (MGE), in partnership with We Energies and Wisconsin Public Service (WPS), subsidiaries of WEC Energy Group, received approval from the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin to purchase solar energy and battery storage from the Darien Solar Energy Center.
MGE will own 25 MW of solar energy and 7.5 MW of battery storage from the 250-MW solar and 75-MW battery storage facility in Rock and Walworth Counties in southern Wisconsin.
“The Darien Solar Energy Center is another important step in our ongoing transition to cleaner energy sources, reducing carbon at least 80% by the end of this decade and achieving net-zero carbon electricity by 2050,” said Jeff Keebler, MGE Chairman, President and CEO. “MGE’s investments in cost-effective, clean energy and battery storage technology help ensure that all our customers will experience the economic and environmental benefits of our clean energy transition.”
Project details
Located on 2,000 acres in the Town of Bradford in Rock County and the Town of Darien in Walworth County, the Darien Solar Energy Center will feature up to 850,000 solar panels. It will generate enough clean energy to power about 75,000 households. MGE’s share of the output will power about 7,500 households.
We Energies and WPS will own the remaining 225 MW of the solar output and 67.5 MW of battery storage from the project. Invenergy LLC is the project developer. The facility is expected to begin serving customers by the end of 2024.
MGE has a goal to reduce carbon emissions at least 80% by 2030. MGE anticipates the addition of nearly 400 MW of wind, solar and battery storage between 2015 and 2024. These projects are expected to increase MGE’s owned renewable capacity by more than nine times when completed.
— Solar Builder magazine
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