Madison Gas and Electric completes 250-megawatt solar project in Darien

Madison Gas and Electric announced this week the completion of a 250-megawatt solar project located on about 2,000 acres of land in the town of Bradford in Rock County and the town of Darien in Walworth County.

The Darien Solar Energy Center is expected to generate enough clean energy to power about 75,000 households each year, according to an announcement from MGE. The company’s share of the output will power about 7,500 households annually.

“Carbon is our target, and the Darien Solar Energy Center is another important step as we continue our progress toward achieving our science-based carbon reduction goals,” said Jeff Keebler, chairman, president and CEO of MGE. “MGE’s investments to enable our continued transition toward deep decarbonization of our energy supply also serve to ensure that all our customers share in the economic and environmental benefits of our more sustainable energy future.”

MGE owns 25 megawatts of solar capacity from the Darien Solar Energy Center. MGE also will own 7.5 megawatts of battery storage from the facility. The 7.5 megawatts of battery storage is expected online in 2026.

We Energies and Wisconsin Public Service, subsidiaries of WEC Energy Group, own the remaining 225 megawatts of solar output and 67.5 megawatts of battery storage from the project.

The facility was developed by Chicago-based Invenergy LLC.