Solar Plant Project Will Power Up This Year In Iowa County

ACROSS WISCONSIN — One of the largest solar farms under construction in the Midwest will start generating power in western Wisconsin this year.

Badger Hollow will enter its first phase of generating power — about 150 megawatts — for the state this year. The facility will run at full capacity in 2022 when it enters its second stage, WEC Energies Group spokesperson Brendan Conway told Patch.

WEC Energies Group first announced the solar farm in 2018 and contracted the Illinois development company Invenergy to build it, WEC spokesperson Brendan Conway told Patch.

Once the facility is running, it will provide electricity for 90,000 homes, Conway said. It will not replace fossil fuel-based power plants in the region but become another energy source for customers.

WEC Energies Group is a utility for the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, a regional energy operator that spans 13 states and one Canadian province, Conway said. Badger Hollow will feed into the pool of other MISO-run energy facilities; if one plant fails, another can step in its place to keep the lights on.

The first solar facility in Wisconsin was Two Creeks Solar Park, which generates 150 megawatts, starting in November 2020, Conway said. Badger Hollow will be the second solar facility in the state.

WEC Energies Group has built renewable energy sources such as hydroelectric dams and wind parks since the 2000s, Conway said.

"Over the last five years, the cost to do these projects, particularly solar, has gone down significantly," Conway said. "Which is why it makes more sense to do it now."