Alliant won't close Sheboygan coal plant

From a story by Doug Carroll in the Sheboygan Press:

Alliant Energy's plans to shut down one of three coal-fired generators at its Sheboygan power plant have been scrapped in the wake of Tuesday's rejection of the company's proposal to build a new facility in southwestern Wisconsin.

Unit 3 at the Edgewater Generating Station in Sheboygan had been scheduled to be closed by 2013, but it will stay up now, according to Alliant spokesman Rob Crain. The generator, built in 1951, is Alliant's oldest coal-fired plant in the state.

Three state regulators voted unanimously Tuesday to deny Alliant's plan to build a coal-fired plant at its Nelson Dewey Generating Station property in Cassville, in Grant County. The $1.26 billion cost and concerns over future carbon-dioxide regulations were cited as factors in the decision.

"The proposal before the Public Service Commission was contingent upon the approval of Norton Dewey," Crain said. "Given our needs, we'll continue to use Edgewater (Unit) 3."