EAU CLAIRE, Wisconsin – Xcel Energy customers in western and northern Wisconsin could now have a choice for accessing locally sourced solar energy through a program proposed today with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin. If approved, Solar*Connect Community would become the largest community solar energy program in Wisconsin.
Xcel Energy will purchase up to three megawatts (3,000 kilowatts) of electricity from local community solar arrays in the company’s service area in western and northern Wisconsin. Customers would in turn subscribe for capacity to meet their desired solar energy needs and receive a monthly credit for their subscription.
“Our customers are increasingly interested in solar energy and in helping support projects right here in Wisconsin,” said Mark Stoering, president, NSP-Wisconsin, an Xcel Energy company. “Solar*Connect Community gives all of our customers an option to access locally sourced solar using the most advanced and efficient technologies available.”
Solar*Connect Community would be another renewable energy option for Xcel Energy customers in Wisconsin. The company’s highly successful Windsource® program currently has 4,400 subscribers in the state.
Xcel Energy will partner with solar project developers who would construct and operate the solar arrays providing renewable energy for customers. It is anticipated that Solar*Connect Community could begin operating in 2016.
