Cambridge, Wis. and Greenwich, Conn.— Dairyland Power Cooperative announced today that it has entered into a purchase agreement to acquire the RockGen Energy Center, a 503 megawatt (MW) natural gas power plant located in Cambridge, Wis., from an affiliate of Starwood Energy Group Global, LLC (“Starwood Energy”). The acquisition is subject to customary conditions, including regulatory approvals, and is expected to close by the end of 2021.
“RockGen will help meet our members’ power supply needs as we transition to more renewable resources,” said Brent Ridge, President and CEO. “Safely delivering reliable and sustainable electricity to our members is critical as we continue to diversify Dairyland’s energy portfolio and lower carbon intensity. With the closing of our coal-fired Genoa Station #3 this year, the availability of this existing, low-cost and reliable facility in Wisconsin is both timely and a good strategic fit for our power supply portfolio.”
“RockGen is a world-class facility and under our ownership, we have been able to add tremendous commercial and operational value to this asset,” said Himanshu Saxena, CEO of Starwood Energy. “We are confident that this asset will serve Dairyland and its members for many years to come.”
Operational since 2001, the RockGen Energy Center is a simple-cycle, dual fuel power generating facility that operates mainly on natural gas. The three 168 MW low-NOx combustion turbines (CTs) can ramp up and down quickly to support intermittent solar and wind resources. In 2020, re-commissioning was completed to allow operation on fuel oil as a backup fuel source. This fuel flexibility enhances reliability in the region when or if the natural gas supply is limited.
About Dairyland Power Cooperative: Dairyland, a Touchstone Energy Cooperative, was formed in December 1941. Headquartered in La Crosse, Wis., Dairyland provides the wholesale electrical requirements for 24 distribution cooperatives and 17 municipal utilities. These cooperatives and municipals, in turn, supply the energy needs of more than a half-million people in the four-state service area. Visit DairylandPower.com.
About Starwood Energy Group: Starwood Energy Group is a private equity investment firm based in Greenwich, Conn., that specializes in energy infrastructure investments. Through its existing general opportunity funds and affiliated investment vehicles, Starwood Energy has raised in excess of $3 billion of equity capital and has executed transactions totaling more than $8 billion in enterprise value. For more information, please visit starwoodenergygroup.com.