MON AM News: Alliant Energy completes latest solar project in Grant County; Everlight Solar expands to Milwaukee

June 3, 2024

— Alliant Energy has finished a large solar project in Grant County that will produce enough energy each year to power more than 50,000 homes, the Madison-based utility announced.

Construction on the 200-megawatt Grant County Solar Project started in September 2022 and involved more than 700 workers, according to the recent release. Covering more than 1,400 acres, the site in Potosi is blanketed by more than 430,000 solar panels.

Lisa Barton, Alliant Energy’s president and CEO, says the project’s completion is a “milestone achievement” in the company’s clean energy transition. It’s part of a package of 12 utility-scale solar projects Alliant has been building in the state with a total output of 1,089 megawatts.

“Investing in a diverse energy mix is just one way we add value for customers while sustaining the economic and environmental health of the communities we serve,” Barton said.

Through these projects, the company can power about 300,000 homes per year with solar, according to the release.

Alliant Energy has been the most aggressive among Wisconsin’s major utilities in pursuing solar development in the state. Its subsidiary, Wisconsin Power & Light Company, was second only to Xcel Energy for the percentage of its energy mix coming from renewable sources in 2022.

Under its Clean Energy Blueprint plans, the company aims to hit 50% renewable energy by 2030. That includes developing nearly 275 megawatts of energy storage capacity to support its renewable energy assets, which are more susceptible to environmental factors than other sources.

Alliant is planning a 100 MW battery project at the same site as the recently completed Grant County solar project, along with a 75 MW battery project in Wood County, also on the same site as a solar energy installation.

The Wood County battery project, in the town of Saratoga, is expected to start operating by the end of the year while the Grant County project is slated to come online by mid-2025, according to an earlier release. Once completed, the projects will have the capacity to power more than 80,000 homes for four hours and 100,000 homes for the same period of time, respectively.

See the latest release and see an earlier story on the clean energy transition in Wisconsin.

— Verona-based solar energy company Everlight Solar has established a presence in Milwaukee, with CEO Will Creech calling it a “key market” for the company’s Midwest expansion.

Friday’s announcement highlights a “remarkable surge” in solar energy adoption across the region, noting Everlight Solar has installed solar arrays at thousands of residences in Wisconsin.

The company — which calls itself the fastest growing solar company in the Midwest — now has locations in Idaho, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming. It was ranked No. 632 on last year’s Inc. 5000 list with a 930% growth rate, according to the release.

“Our goal is to make solar energy accessible and affordable for everyone, and we are excited to bring our expertise to the vibrant Milwaukee community,” Creech said in a statement.

See the release.

— The latest edition of the WisPolitics Capitol Chats podcast explores concerns about Wisconsin’s nursing homes’ ability to meet new minimum staffing standards in the midst of a worker shortage.

Featured guest Rick Abrams, CEO of the Wisconsin Health Care Association and Wisconsin Center for Assisted Living, argues the recently announced standards are “well-intentioned” but the specific approach is flawed.

Vice President Kamala Harris touted the new proposed federal rules during a recent visit to Wisconsin.

One would require all nursing homes receiving federal funding through Medicare and Medicaid to have 3.48 hours per resident per day of total staffing. That includes a minimum requirement for registered nurses of 0.55 hours per resident per day and for nurses aides of 2.45 hours per resident per day.

Another would require at least 80% of Medicaid payments for home care services to go to the wages of those providing the care.

Abrams calls the proposed changes an “over simplistic” attempt to solve a complex problem, noting every nursing facility across the country has a different mix of patients.

“If another facility has a patient mix that is more custodial or needs less intensive care, their combination of staffing — maybe even staffing numbers, depending on the number of people in the facility and their needs — is going to be different,” he said.

Abrams says the “black and white” requirement of a certain number of staff hours per resident per day is too rigid and fails to account for these differences.

Listen to the podcast and see the full catalog of Capitol Chats episodes.

— Madison-based EnsoData has entered a new partnership with a North Carolina business called Aeroflow, applying AI technology to sleep apnea.

Under the recently announced strategic partnership, EnsoData’s positive airway pressure, or PAP, therapy adherence model will be used by Aeroflow’s sleep coaches. The EnsoTherapy AI platform will provide concrete data in hopes of improving therapy compliance for certain patients, according to the release.

Sam Rusk, chief artificial intelligence officer for EnsoData, says the company’s PAP therapy prediction models can accurately forecast patient compliance for up to 90 days “within days” of starting treatment. He says EnsoTherapy will “have a transformative impact” on patients who are challenged with sleep apnea treatment, by helping Aeroflow prioritize those struggling the most.

“This collaboration will bring patients the best CPAP therapy onboarding experience possible and help them feel understood throughout their treatment journey, while also demonstrating best-in-class adherence results,” Rusk said in a statement.

Aeroflow Director of Sleep Joey Sasvari said the company’s support team members have “already witnessed significant improvements” in their ability to offer personalized help for patients.

“Though it is still early, we have already seen an uptick in the number of patients meeting their usage requirements within the initial 30 days,” he said in the release. “We are excited to see the outcomes at the 90-day mark.”

Financial terms of the partnership were not disclosed.

See the release, and see more at Madison Startups.

For more of the most relevant health care news, reports on groundbreaking research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics and WisBusiness.com.

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— In a recent Democratic radio address, Gov. Tony Evers kicked off June Dairy Month.

Evers highlighted investments made to bolster Wisconsin’s multi-billion dollar dairy industry. He says last year’s budget included efforts to support producers by increasing dairy processor grants by $300,000 each year.

“I’ve signed legislation to advance our state’s agricultural export program, including funding explicitly targeted at promoting dairy products,” he says. “And we’re helping make sure folks like our farmers and producers have reliable roads to transport their goods and supplies safely and securely from point A to point B with our new Agricultural Road Improvement Program, too.”

He says his administration has also invested in projects like the Dairy Innovation Hub and the Center for Dairy Research at UW-Madison.

“Nobody does dairy like we do, and we will continue to support this industry to ensure its growth and success for future generations,” he says. “Because in America’s Dairyland, dairy is part of our DNA. As Wisconsinites, it’s part of our way of life.”

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TOPICS

AGRIBUSINESS

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– Strawberry season will likely be early this year. Here’s where you can pick your own around Milwaukee.

CONSTRUCTION

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– Gorman completes redevelopment of vacant Milwaukee school building

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EDUCATION

– Evers names new UW regents amid standoff with Scott Walker appointee