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Columbia Energy Center

Coordinates: 43°29′10″N 89°25′13″W / 43.48611°N 89.42028°W / 43.48611; -89.42028
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Columbia Energy Center
Coal ash pond landfill in the foreground
Map
CountryUnited States
LocationDekorra, south of Portage, Wisconsin
Coordinates43°29′10″N 89°25′13″W / 43.48611°N 89.42028°W / 43.48611; -89.42028
StatusActive, under construction
Commission date1975–1978
OwnersWisconsin Power and Light Company (46.2%), Wisconsin Public Service (31.8%), Madison Gas and Electric (22%)
Thermal power station
Primary fuelCoal
Cooling sourceLake Columbia
Power generation
Nameplate capacity1023 MW
Capacity factor46.99% (2023)
Annual net output4211 GWh (2023)
External links
CommonsRelated media on Commons
[edit on Wikidata]

Columbia Energy Center is a base load, sub-bituminous coal-fired, electrical power station located south of Portage in the Town of Pacific, Columbia County, Wisconsin.[1] Ownership is 46.2% Wisconsin Power and Light Company (Alliant Energy),[2] 31.8% Wisconsin Public Service (Integrys Energy Group),[3] and 22% Madison Gas and Electric (MGE).[4]

History

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Columbia Energy Center was built in the early 1970s. Unit 1 went online in 1975 and Unit 2 went online in 1978, with nameplate capacities of 512 MW and 511 MW, respectively.[5][6]

In 2009, faced with environmental regulations regarding future operations, the owners of Columbia Energy Center invested in upgrades to the plant. The owners submitted an Electric Generation Expansion Analysis System (EGEAS) summary report to the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin on April 2, 2009. The report presented the results of a planning and scenarios analysis to support Wisconsin Power and Light, Wisconsin Public Service Corporation, and MGE's joint application for a Certificate of Authority (CA) for the installation of emission controls at the facility.[7]

Although not required by law, the Commission held a hearing on the matter of the upgrade after several parties, including the Citizens Utility Board (CUB), Clean Wisconsin (Clean WI), and the Sierra Club, filed a joint request to intervene.

Columbia's owners were granted a Certificate authorizing the installation of air emissions reductions systems and associated equipment on March 11, 2011, at an estimate cost of $627 million.[8] Construction began on April 16, 2012, and was completed in December 2014 at a total cost of $589 million.[9]

On February 2, 2021, Alliant Energy, the majority owner and operator of the Columbia Energy Center announced the plant will shut down by 2025.[10] On June 23, 2022, Alliant announced that CEC's decommissioning date would be delayed until mid-2026, due to the ongoing supply chain issues and to hedge against an energy shortage in upcoming years, with CEC mainly being in service during peak periods.[11]

MGE has since pushed back the retirement date of both units to June 2026.[12]

Future plans

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After receiving a $30 million federal grant, Alliant Energy announced it would build a 20MW / 200MWh storage system on the site, similar to a prototype in Italy. The storage system is a novel closed-system carbon dioxide technology that converts the gas to liquid and back again at 75% efficiency, depending on demand.[13][14] An application to construct, own, and operate the system was filed on August 7, 2024 with the Wisconsin PSC.[15]

Peregrine Falcons

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An active peregrine falcon nest has been located on the stack of Unit 1 since 2006. The nest has produced over 60 peregrine falcon young in that time (3.3/yr).[16]

Electricity generation

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In 2023, Columbia Energy Center generated 4,211 GWh, approximately 6.6% of the total electric power generated in Wisconsin (63,216 GWh)[17] for that year. The plant had a 2023 annual capacity factor of 46.99%.

Electrical Generation (MW-h) of Columbia Energy Center[18]
Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Annual (Total)
2001 642,820 247,770 518,771 637,701 649,573 661,011 702,598 651,353 586,758 733,229 611,023 670,110 7,312,717
2002 668,371 404,604 560,226 335,436 324,886 598,798 668,431 665,689 576,658 536,217 529,475 603,363 6,472,154
2003 659,943 327,988 392,363 675,770 660,647 641,584 655,060 669,915 640,918 534,049 609,723 638,706 7,106,666
2004 383,676 619,858 670,831 429,457 494,807 641,466 639,495 637,499 657,645 632,399 678,152 624,761 7,110,046
2005 572,172 264,620 370,953 332,547 535,716 671,913 708,256 683,039 644,925 722,464 537,604 654,830 6,699,039
2006 469,660 282,812 482,381 487,178 551,345 627,756 697,236 595,374 623,681 641,130 665,286 625,194 6,749,033
2007 458,424 531,772 407,459 584,306 626,137 668,775 612,109 662,360 651,027 633,738 672,419 576,814 7,085,340
2008 375,059 397,372 457,036 686,663 705,323 624,840 709,923 715,716 631,597 697,391 643,677 673,024 7,317,621
2009 417,796 443,918 384,220 444,501 405,887 505,353 588,817 631,489 635,711 686,061 644,015 693,676 6,481,444
2010 435,594 412,034 433,599 652,619 711,952 679,921 719,898 723,665 570,873 649,259 586,714 680,659 7,256,787
2011 437,302 450,502 647,039 458,340 495,875 646,546 645,163 646,764 647,981 667,256 558,440 675,667 6,976,875
2012 451,980 401,013 349,374 605,789 703,619 649,765 678,785 727,720 669,136 712,572 626,653 743,799 7,320,205
2013 709,899 548,318 436,782 419,630 393,665 619,922 679,403 743,253 642,453 732,916 621,870 690,299 7,238,410
2014 534,949 344,603 639,295 450,183 286,048 587,113 466,092 370,543 244,127 247,022 392,454 377,506 4,939,935
2015 458,555 328,153 338,570 247,374 307,023 503,666 547,214 528,561 535,086 466,017 233,831 365,608 4,859,658
2016 272,871 178,897 217,034 223,158 466,190 543,414 617,404 677,756 519,535 548,796 338,510 373,334 4,976,899
2017 448,843 429,460 395,089 356,235 543,397 592,033 662,933 620,854 592,989 579,969 620,175 667,367 6,509,344
2018 436,005 300,944 499,424 616,208 569,643 462,686 643,897 669,221 639,473 617,291 666,096 520,782 6,641,670
2019 571,530 481,686 317,028 268,125 492,822 445,205 599,811 477,535 485,133 409,648 501,284 316,756 5,366,563
2020 439,857 444,990 311,850 200,944 272,560 458,864 519,223 583,612 357,494 344,918 522,848 729,745 5,186,905
2021 558,710 621,069 465,640 330,631 299,028 680,295 739,397 730,481 560,869 327,610 271,034 322,049 5,906,813
2022 489,615 435,252 280,724 264,629 176,109 309,464 463,008 476,916 283,419 230,366 287,517 326,370 4,023,389
2023 174,275 160,152 220,172 261,154 431,237 397,010 572,809 589,728 509,881 362,367 239,662 293,093 4,211,540
2024 660,934 318,463 165,707 180,279 259,343

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Lyn Jerde. "Groundbreaking marks air quality project at Columbia Energy Center". Portage Daily Register, October 10, 2016.
  2. ^ "Alliant Energy Corp, Form 10-K, Annual Report, Filing Date Mar 11, 2004". secdatabase.com. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
  3. ^ SEC Form U-3A-2, 12/31/2002. Integrys Energy Group, Inc.
  4. ^ Environmental Responsibility Report on Climate Change Archived 2006-11-01 at the Wayback Machine. Madison Gas and Electric (MGE).
  5. ^ "Our history (Wisconsin Public Service)". accel.wisconsinpublicservice.com. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  6. ^ "ERF - Search Result". apps.psc.wi.gov. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  7. ^ "ERF - Search Result". apps.psc.wi.gov. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  8. ^ "ERF - Search Result". apps.psc.wi.gov. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  9. ^ POWER (2015-10-01). "TOP PLANTS: Columbia Energy Center, Portage, Wisconsin". POWER Magazine. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  10. ^ Hubbuch, Chris (2021-02-02). "Columbia power plant to close by 2025, ending coal-fired power in Portage". Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved 2021-02-02.
  11. ^ Hess, Corrinne (23 June 2022). "We Energies and Alliant Energy coal plants in Wisconsin to stay open longer due to energy supply fears". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  12. ^ Schmidt, Mitchell (November 3, 2023). "Update: No more coal use by 2032". The Wisconsin State Journal. pp. A3, A5.
  13. ^ Schulz, Joe (2023-09-25). "Wisconsin will house an energy storage facility that's the first of its kind in the US". WPR. Retrieved 2024-08-19.
  14. ^ "Alliant Energy utility wants to demonstrate nation's first CO2-based long-duration 'energy dome'". Utility Dive. 20 August 2024.
  15. ^ Templeton, Carrie (August 7, 2024). "Joint Application of Wisconsin Power and Light Company, Wisconsin Public Service Corporation, and Madison Gas and Electric Company for a Certificate of Authority for Construction, Installation, and Ownership of an Energy Storage System, Known as Columbia Storage, in Columbia County, Wisconsin Docket No. 5-CE-156". Retrieved August 19, 2024.
  16. ^ Septon, Greg. 2023. Wisconsin Falconwatch – 2023 Nesting Season Report - an account of peregrine falcon nesting activity in WI for 2023. Milwaukee, WI. 89 pp.
  17. ^ "Electricity Data Browser". www.eia.gov. Retrieved 2023-01-15.
  18. ^ "Electricity Data Browser". www.eia.gov. Retrieved 2024-08-19.
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