(Beaver Dam) Alliant Energy announced Tuesday the completion of its Beaver Dam Solar Project. The 50-megawatt solar array, situated roughly four-miles outside of the city, spans 350 acres and consists of nearly 120-thousand solar panels. Construction on the project began in September of 2022 and employed over 120 carpenters, electricians, operating engineers and laborers.
Officials with Alliant say over 80-percent of the workforce was Wisconsin-based, which kept project dollars in the community and maximized the project’s local economic benefits.
The company’s senior communications specialist, Tony Palese, adds that while generating clean, zero-fuel-cost electricity for customers, the Beaver Dam Solar Project also delivers long-term benefits to the community, landowners, and local residents.
“We see benefits in terms of the jobs that were created during construction and those long-term shared revenue benefits for the community as well,” says Palese. “We estimate that about six-million in new shared revenue is going to be coming to the county and the towns there over the next 30 years, which is really a great help financially for the community. They’ll be able to put those dollars to use there locally.”
In total, the project is expected to produce enough energy to power approximately 13,000 homes annually. Palese notes that native low-growth grass seeding and over 45 acres of newly planted native pollinator habitat will enrich the soil, improve surface water quality and support wildlife habitat diversity, all of which benefits participating landowners, farmers and community residents.
