Alliant picks biomass suppliers for Cassville plant
From an article by Paul Snyder in The Daily Reporter:
Wisconsin Power & Light Co. is lining up candidates to deliver biomass fuel to a plant expansion it doesn’t yet have approval to build.
The company, a subsidiary of Alliant Energy Corp., announced it selected five Wisconsin companies as candidates for a supply chain for the expansion of the Nelson Dewey Generating Facility in Cassville.
Alliant spokesman Rob Crain said the field of five candidates includes Premier Cooperative, Mt. Horeb; Midwest Forest Products/InDeck Energy Services Inc., Hayward; Bioenergy Products LLC, Lancaster; Futurewood, Hayward; and Marathon-based Marth Wood Shaving Supply Inc. He said the field will be narrowed to one or two companies later this year.
But that’s only if the project gets approval from the state, said Mark Redsten, executive director of Clean Wisconsin Inc., a nonprofit environmental group opposing the expansion.
The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin is reviewing the expansion proposal and must issue its decision by Dec. 15.
Although Alliant promised 20 percent of the plant’s generation will come from renewable sources, the fact the plant would be predominantly coal-fired garnered continuing opposition from groups such as Clean Wisconsin and the Sierra Club.
Most of Alliant’s recent press releases about the project, which is estimated between $1.2 billion and $1.4 billion, highlight the company’s commitment to renewable energy.
Redsten said he’s still not buying it.
“We’ve been hitting them hard,” he said. “I wonder if this announcement (about biomass suppliers) is just an attempt to make the project seem more palatable.”
