Elk Mound Generating Station celebrates 20 years

Dec. 7, 2021

For two decades, Dairyland's Elk Mound (Wis.) Generating Station has produced reliable and affordable electricity for the region.

First online in June 2001, the two dual-fuel combustion turbines (natural gas with fuel oil as back-up) contribute approximately 75 megawatts (MW) of peaking capacity and energy. As a peaking plant, the Elk Mound Combustion Turbines (CTs) have been able to step in and maintain safety and convenience for energy consumers during extreme weather conditions.

"Elk Mound is there when the chips are down," said Tony McKimmy, Dairyland Manager, Renewable and Combustion Turbine Generation. "During those high heat and humidity days, polar vortexes, transmission issues and anything in between."

"These plants are unique in our system in that they can start from a dead stop to generating full load in about 20 minutes," continued McKimmy. He noted that full load is highly variable depending on air temperature. In the hottest weather, the units will generate about 34 MW each; in the coldest Midwest winter weather, they can generate almost 50 MW each.

Elk Mound's operating impact
•The Elk Mound CTs take only 20 minutes to start-up, going from literally zero to 75 MW.
•A typical year sees 20 to 40 start-ups for the units. By comparison, in 2021, both units had about 80 start-ups.
•Online hours in a typical year are about 165 per unit. In 2021, both units have about 800 hours of run time.

Additionally, since the renewable energy-supporting facility can ramp up quickly, it fills in crucial generating gaps during times when solar and wind energy production capabilities are low.

Breaking records in 2021
Between the February 2021 polar vortex and summertime loads, the facility has been more in demand than ever. This year, each unit operated for over 800 hours and the station has generated 57,231 MWH by the end of October (12,000 MWH is typical for an average year).

"2021 is a record year for Elk Mound, almost doubling (at the end of October) the previous record in 2007 of 30,529 megawatt-hours," said McKimmy. "This is in stark contrast to the post-recession low a couple years later in 2009 of only 338 megawatt-hours, demonstrating the extreme variability of operation."

The people behind the power
Of course, Elk Mound would not mark any of these achievements without Dairyland's plant operating professionals: Foreperson-CT Mark Feigum, Renewable & CT Techs Dan Lucas and Chad Robinson. "The staff at Elk Mound are dedicated and are experts at what they do," said McKimmy. "It is hard to run 24/7 with a staff of three, but when it happens, they rise up to meet the challenges to ensure that the plant performs well."

Fast facts
•The Elk Mound CTs are "black-start" units, meaning they can start their own power without support from the grid in the event of a major power system collapse or a system-wide blackout.
•The Elk Mound site is served by existing transmission lines and is adjacent to Dairyland's substation site, which we have owned and operated since 1960.

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