SHEBOYGAN, WI (WHBL) - The smoke stacks that dot the south side of Sheboygan along Lake Michigan may not change in the near future, but what comes out of them will.
Alliant Energy gave an update Wednesday on the construction of a new air quality control system, which is designed to remove the vast majority of sulfur dioxide and mercury emitted by burning coal for their Unit 5 system.
Plant Manager Eric Sandvig says the project continues on schedule. “We’re about 60 percent through construction," says Sandvig. Most of the outside work is complete, and the bulk of the work will be inside the structure. He add the plan is to have the system online in May of 2016.
Alliant Energy Senior Vice President John Larson says the project is one of many ways the utility is trying to stay ahead of expected air regulation changes in their industry. He highlighted other projects the utility is doing to make them more balanced in how they are generating electricity.
Sandvig says the new system at Edgewater will ensure the plant's largest electricity generating system remains in use for years to come. “Edgewater Unit 5 is an important unit for our customers because it’s low cost, and that unit has to be able to operate at full capacity so our customer’s costs can be maintained at a low level. That system will allow us to fully utilize that unit.”
With one new piece of equipment comes the expected news that the other two electricity generating units at Edgewater will be coming to an end. “We are committed to retiring our Edgewater Unit 3, which is the smallest and oldest unit there, by the end of this year," says Sandvig, "and we’re developing plans for the retirement of Edge 4.” The current plan is to retire Edge 4 sometime around 2018.
As for the possibility of having renewable energy sources generated at Edgewater like solar or wind, Sandvig says there are no plans for this at the facility in the foreseeable future. However, a similar style of plant in the state is being used as a pilot site to test if more solar generation can help with their operations.
