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DOE closes $5.1 billion Alliant loan package for gas, storage and upgrades

The October 28 close supports projects in Iowa and Wisconsin. Projected cost savings are estimates over the loan life, not household bill cuts already delivered.

The U.S. Department of Energy announced on October 28 that it closed a $5.1 billion loan package for Alliant Energy projects in Iowa and Wisconsin. The package supports the utility subsidiaries Interstate Power and Light and Wisconsin Power and Light.

DOE describes more than 2.6 gigawatts of new or upgraded power capacity supported by the financing. Its project page lists approximately 1,500 megawatts of new natural-gas generation, 240 megawatts of increased capacity at existing units and approximately 1,000 megawatts of battery storage.

The package also supports two billion cubic feet of liquefied-natural-gas storage. The gas-storage volume is not battery energy capacity. Likewise, the battery figure is a power rating in megawatts, not a disclosure of how many hours the batteries can supply that output.

The financial close is distinct from construction completion or the start of commercial operation. DOE's announcement does not establish that all supported generation and storage is already serving customers. It also does not describe the package as an entirely renewable-energy investment.

DOE estimates $1.2 billion in energy-cost savings across the service areas over the life of the loans. It says annual interest-expense reductions could exceed $46 million, subject to project advancement, qualification and financing terms. These are projections, not measured household bill reductions already delivered.

The Alliant close is separate from the conditional Constellation nuclear-uprate commitment announced that week. Combining those announcements into a single funded nuclear loan would misstate both the technologies and financing stages. This brief covers the closed Alliant package only.

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