The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSC-W) has scheduled opportunities for public comment on the proposed Cardinal-Hickory Creek transmission line, a $500 million transmission line to connect Dubuque County, Iowa, and Dane County, Wisconsin. Locations and dates for public hearings:
June 25, 2019, 2:00 p.m. & 6:00 p.m., Lancaster, WI
June 26, 2019, 2:00 p.m. & 6:00 p.m., Madison, WI
June 27, 2019, 2:00 p.m. & 6:00 p.m., Dodgeville, WI
The $500 million line cost is nearly $150 million less than upgrading 13 other lower-voltage transmission projects and several groups, including Clean Grid Alliance, Union of Concerned Scientists, and the National Farmers Union and their energy industry members like Invenergy, NextEra, and Vestas, are in support of the project as a means to transport energy from wind and solar. However, opponents highlight the sunk cost of a 40-year electric rate increase needed to pay off the project in the rapidly transitioning electric industry. Opponents, including some environmental groups, conservation groups, and landowners, favor a package of substitute plans that includes adoption of local renewable resources (see EnergyOnWI news, December 2018 report on smart grid upgrades).
MISO (Midwest Independent System Operator) a nonprofit organization that manages the flow of electricity across the transmission lines of the upper Midwest into Canada (the air-traffic controller of the electric grid), favors this line as the most cost-effective project to facilitate the supply of clean energy across the Midwest. RTO Insider