Power lines bring renewable energy into communities
Demand for renewable power is growing. Recent policy changes in more than 30 states have required utilities to produce or purchase a greater portion of their electricity from renewable energy sources. Some of these changes represent dramatic increases over prior standards and will, by necessity, require expanded transmission line capacity across the Midwest region.

Midwestern states' renewable electricity requirements

Working to help states meet renewable energy goals
ATC is participating in several regional planning groups to ensure the transmission system can deliver the energy needed to meet states’ renewable goals. ATC is involved multiple studies with the Upper Midwest Transmission Development Initiative and the Minnesota CapX2020 group. Through these studies, ATC has identified various new high-voltage transmission line projects that can help deliver renewable energy while also addressing reliability issues in the Midwest. Learn more about the studies.

Renewable energy generation differs from traditional generation
Establishing renewable generation is very different than the traditional coal or nuclear plants. Traditional generation is typically built near existing transmission facilities and railways that bring the fuel to the generator.

Renewable generation is located where wind, solar, biomass or hydro resources are abundant, and sufficient space exists to harness them. These sites are often in remote locations with site-specific resources, far away from population centers with well-developed transportation and electric transmission infrastructure. Once a location for a renewable generating facility is identified, a plan to connect the generation to the long-distance transmission grid must be developed.

ATC links electric generation to the transmission grid
Within the ATC service area, the poles and wires that carry electricity at high voltages over long distances from power plants to local distribution facilities are owned and operated by ATC. When a new generation facility is proposed, ATC works closely with developers to ensure that transmission interconnections and improvements are made to accommodate the electricity that is produced. ATC also is a liaison with and for the customer with the Midwest ISO.

Wind power leads the way
Wind power in particular has experienced phenomenal growth, increasing more than tenfold from 2,000 to more than 25,000 megawatts of wind power capacity in 2008. Nonetheless, wind still represents less than one percent of all U.S. power capacity, and use of renewable energy from all sources hovers around 4 percent in the Midwest. Biomass capacity nationally is smaller at 7,000 megawatts. Regionally and nationally, coal remains the predominant electricity-generating fuel; 70 percent of electricity consumed is generated by coal.

Wind energy projects in Wisconsin
Despite Wisconsin's few wind alleys and comparably lower wind speeds, many developers are now proposing and constructing new wind projects. Today's advances in technology are able to more efficiently harness Wisconsin's winds compared to the past. ATC is in the process of connecting to more than 500 megawatts of wind generating capacity in Brown, Columbia and Lafayette counties, enough to light about 136,000 homes. These projects are expected to be online between 2010 to 2012, depending on the project. Additionally, more than 1,400 megawatts of additional wind projects are under study in the ATC service territory.