Thursday, January 30, 2014

PSCW gives preliminary approval to convert VAPP to natural gas

The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW) today granted preliminary approval of our plans to convert the fuel source of Valley Power Plant (VAPP) to natural gas and to upgrade the natural gas infrastructure near the facility.

We announced our intent to convert the fuel source for VAPP from coal to natural gas in August 2012 and filed plans with the PSCW in April 2013. We will await the final written order before proceeding with construction, but we anticipate completion of the project by late 2015 or early 2016.

“We are pleased with the commission’s decision to approve our plan to convert the fuel source at Valley Power Plant from coal to natural gas,” said Gale Klappa, chairman, president and chief executive officer of We Energies. “Along with improving the environmental profile of the plant, the conversion will provide millions of dollars in savings to our electric customers annually and will maintain a reliable and affordable source of heat and energy to more than 400 downtown steam customers.”

The plant’s electric capacity is expected to remain at 280 megawatts. The current cost estimate of conversion is approximately $70 million.

Located along the Menomonee River in Milwaukee, VAPP is a cogeneration facility that generates electricity for the grid and produces reliable steam for nearly 450 customers in downtown Milwaukee. Analysis shows that converting the fuel source for the plant will reduce operating costs and enhance the environmental performance of the units.

Monday, January 27, 2014

Natural gas conservation request for northwest Wisconsin lifted

We are lifting our natural gas conservation request for customers in northwest Wisconsin.

TransCanada continues to make repairs to its pipeline that was damaged because of an explosion early Saturday. Two other pipelines were shut down until inspections could be completed. One went into service last night. The other is expected to return to service in a day or two.

We are receiving the amount of natural gas we need for our customers via Viking Gas Transmission, which transports natural gas to our system in northwest Wisconsin. Though extreme cold tonight and tomorrow will continue to challenge the system, we expect to be able to meet demand. We appreciate the conservation measures taken by our customers since the incident occurred.

A small number of commercial and industrial customers on interruptible-service rates remain without service until further notice.

Manitoba explosion reduces natural gas supply to customers in northwest Wisconsin

An explosion in Manitoba early Saturday knocked out three natural gas pipelines that help supply our northwest Wisconsin service area. One of the pipelines is expected to return to service this afternoon.

In the meantime, we have reached out to our customers via local media to explain the situation and ask them to conserve natural gas. Natural gas flows from TransCanada are increasing to Viking Gas Transmission, which is our supplier in the region. If repair work is completed as expected and our system stabilizes, we may end our conservation request later today. Conservation measures taken by our customers have helped improve the situation, and we thank our customers for taking action.

We will update this site with new developments and post links to these updates from our Facebook and Twitter pages.

More than 140 cities, towns and villages that we serve are affected by the reduced supply. Here is the complete list: 
CITIES
AMERY
AUGUSTA
BARRON
BLACK RIVER FALLS
BLAIR
BLOOMER
CHETEK
CORNELL
CUMBERLAND
DURAND
GILLETT
GLENWOOD CITY
GREENWOOD
HAYWARD
LADYSMITH
LOYAL
NEILLSVILLE
OSSEO
RICE LAKE
SHELL LAKE
SPARTA
SPOONER
ST CROIX FALLS
STANLEY
TOMAH
TOWNS
ADAMS
ADRIAN
ALBION
ALMA
ALMENA
ANGELO
ANSON
APPLE RIVER
ARLAND
BALDWIN
BALSAM LAKE
BANGOR
BARRON
BASHAW
BASS LAKE
BEAVER
BEAVER BROOK
BLACK BROOK
BRIDGE CREEK
BROCKWAY
BURNS
BYRON
CADY
CHETEK
CLAYTON
CLEAR LAKE
CLINTON
COLFAX
CRYSTAL LAKE
CUMBERLAND
CURRAN
CYLON
DALLAS
DANIELS
DELMAR
DEWEY
DOVRE
DURAND
EATON
EAU GALLE
EDSON
ELLSWORTH
ESTELLA
EVERGREEN
FARMINGTON
FLAMBEAU
FREMONT
GARFIELD
GILMAN
GLENWOOD
GOETZ
GRANT
GRANTSBURG
GREENFIELD
GROW
HAMILTON
HAMMOND
HARTLAND
HAY RIVER
HAYWARD
HIXTON
ISABELLE
JEFFERSON
KINNICKINNIC
LA FOLLETTE
LA GRANGE
LAFAYETTE
LAKELAND
LEON
LINCOLN
LOYAL
LUCK
LUDINGTON
LYNN
MAPLE GROVE
MAPLE PLAIN
MEENON
MILLTOWN
OAK GROVE
OAKLAND
OSCEOLA
OTTER CREEK
PIGEON
PINE VALLEY
PLEASANT VALLEY
PORTLAND
PRAIRIE LAKE
PRESTON
RICE LAKE
ROCK
RUSH RIVER
RUSK
SAND LAKE
SIGEL
SIREN
SPARTA
SPOONER
SPRING LAKE
SPRINGBROOK
SPRINGFIELD
ST CROIX FALLS
STANLEY
STANTON
STAR PRAIRIE
STINNETT
STRICKLAND
STUBBS
SUMNER
SWISS
THORNAPPLE
TIFFANY
TOMAH
TREGO
TRENTON
TURTLE LAKE
UNION
WATERVILLE
WAUBEEK
WEST SWEDEN
WESTON
WILSON
WOOD RIVER
WOODMOHR
YORK
VILLAGES
ALMA CENTER
ALMENA
BALDWIN
BALSAM LAKE
BANGOR
BAY CITY
BOYCEVILLE
BOYD
BRUCE
CADOTT
CAMERON
CASHTON
CENTURIA
CLAYTON
CLEAR LAKE
COLFAX
DEER PARK
DOWNING
 DRESSER
ELLSWORTH
ELMWOOD
FREDERIC
GRANTON
GRANTSBURG
HAUGEN
HIXTON
KNAPP
LUCK
MERRILLAN
MILLTOWN
NEW AUBURN
OSCEOLA
PIGEON FALLS
PLUM CITY
ROCKLAND
SIREN
SPRING VALLEY
STAR PRAIRIE
TURTLE LAKE
WEBSTER
WEST SALEM
WEYERHAEUSER
WILSON
WOODVILLE
WYEVILLE

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Cookie recipes needed

The holidays may have just wrapped up, but we are already busy planning for next holiday season – and need your help. As we’ve done the past couple of years, we are including customer recipes in our popular Cookie Book. This past year, 35 lucky customers made the cut. Now we need a new batch of original recipes for our next edition. 
2013 Cookie Book (pdf)

It’s easy to submit your recipe. Simply complete the online form. Recipes must be original. Many people have wonderful stories behind their recipes, We would like to hear those, too. Please share your family’s tradition.

We have an online recipe section that provides more information about the Cookie Book and access to many past editions.

The 2014 We Energies Cookie Book will be unveiled in November. Customers will be notified in advance if their recipe is chosen.

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Generating fleet meets all-time winter peak demand

Our fleet of coal, natural gas and renewable power plants was severely tested last week as demand soared during the extreme cold weather. At its peak on Jan. 7, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) called on our plants to deliver nearly 6,300 megawatts (MW) to the market. This eclipsed the previous winter peak of just more than 5,900 MW set Dec. 12, 2013. Prior to this winter, the highest winter output was approximately 5,750 MW, set in December 2009.

Pleasant Prairie Power Plant
Our power plants operate within the MISO market, which includes 15 U.S. states and one Canadian province, covering and managing one of the largest wholesale electricity markets in North America. MISO dispatches our units among hundreds of other generating units within the MISO footprint to meet electricity demand.

Despite the challenging conditions, our power plants met the demand and kept the power and steam flowing for our customers.



Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Natural gas consumption sets record

Our customers recently set an all-time record for natural gas consumption. For the 24-hour period ending at 9 a.m., Tuesday, Jan. 7, we delivered 1.920 million dekatherms of natural gas to customers across the region, breaking the previous record of 1.788 million dekatherms reached on Jan. 15, 2009.

The new all-time high is more than 7 percent above the previous one-day record.

The new mark was set even though a record low temperature was not reached in southeastern Wisconsin. Our natural gas delivery system handled the record demand without any significant problems.

One dekatherm equals 10 therms. A therm is a measure of heat energy. Our typical residential customer uses 900 therms in a year, about 600 of which are used during the heating season.

Friday, January 3, 2014

Be ready for extreme cold

Extreme cold coming Sunday night and continuing through Tuesday will be the coldest weather in our service area in nearly two decades. While our energy distribution systems are built to withstand extreme cold, equipment problems, wildlife damage, high winds and other reasons can cause outages at any time of the year. As always, be prepared to stay safe -- especially during severe cold.

Preparation

Add our numbers to your cell phone:
  • Power outage or electrical emergency: 800-662-4797
  • Gas leak, odor or emergency: 800-261-5325

Assemble an emergency kit and put it where it’s easy to find in the dark. Suggested items:
  • Flashlights and extra batteries
  • Blankets
  • Bottled water — half gallon a day per person
  • Battery-operated radio and extra batteries
  • Canned or dried food and hand-operated can opener
  • First-aid kit
  • Prescription medications
  • Specialty items for infants, seniors or disabled family members
Other considerations:
  • Check on friends, neighbors and relatives, especially seniors or anyone with medical conditions
  • Keep pets safe
  • Keep electronic devices, especially cell phones, charged
  • Find out where area emergency shelters are located should you need to leave your home

Power outages
  • Report and get updates on your outage by calling 800-662-4797
  • Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible
  • Use manual operation of garage door
  • Dress in layers of clothing to stay warm and go to safe shelter if your home becomes extremely cold
  • Use battery-operated lights rather than candles
  • Unplug or turn off appliances to avoid overloading when power is restored
  • Leave a single light on to alert you when power is restored
  • If you are the only home without power, check your breakers or fuses
  • Close blinds or drapes and avoid opening doors to retain heat
  • Use a generator to power your furnace, but use it properly
  • Use a properly vented fireplace or wood-burning stove, if you have one
  • Do not use outdoor grills, kerosene heaters or camping heaters

Natural gas leaks and outages

Natural gas outages are rare; however, equipment failures, digging damage, natural disasters and other causes can disrupt service at any time. Damage meters, corroded appliance connectors and other causes can cause leaks. We add a foul odor to help you detect leaks. If you smell a leak:
  • Leave immediately – do not turn on light switches or use phone.
  • Call us at 800-261-5325 from another location.

Additional winter weather safety resources

American Red Cross
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention