Alliant Energy wants to plant a roughly $730 million, 277-megawatt wind farm in the Columbia County countryside, a project the company says could power about 100,000 homes. Branded the Columbia Wind project, it would scatter more than 40 large, modern turbines across private farmland and has already entered formal state review. Utility officials are pitching customer savings and fresh tax revenue, while some neighbors are raising alarms about health, safety and who actually gets to call the shots.
Company files formal application with PSC
Through a subsidiary called Columbia Project LLC, Alliant has filed for a certificate of public convenience and necessity with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin. The application, submitted Dec. 30, 2025, is listed as PSC Docket No. 9836-CE-100 and includes maps, technical studies and an environmental review, according to the Public Service Commission.
What Alliant is proposing
Alliant Energy says Columbia Wind would deliver 277 megawatts of nameplate capacity using more than 40 “next-generation” turbines and that it has signed voluntary lease agreements with more than 300 landowners. The company also says it has a supply agreement in place with turbine maker Nordex and that development work on the site has been underway for nearly five years, according to an Alliant Energy news release.
Big turbines, big savings, company says
The project carries a price tag of about $730 million, and Alliant and its project manager say they will use taller, more powerful turbines so fewer towers are needed across the landscape. Justin Foss, the Columbia Wind project manager, told reporters the utility expects “upwards of $463 million” in customer fuel-cost savings over 35 years, if the project performs as planned. That estimate and his comments were reported by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Jobs and county revenue
On the economic front, Alliant says construction would create roughly 100 to 150 jobs and that the project would generate more than $100 million in tax revenue for Columbia County, while lease payments would bring new income to participating landowners. Those projections appear in company fact sheets and public materials, according to Alliant Energy.
Towns push back
Community meetings across the county last year drew vocal opposition, especially from residents in the town of Columbus, who raised concerns about potential health effects, safety issues and the erosion of local control. Environmental advocates, meanwhile, have welcomed the prospect of more wind power but criticized the utility for continuing to invest in natural gas at the same time. Both threads of reaction were reported by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Timeline and next steps
Alliant filed the project under an LLC structure and says it will seek PSC approval to acquire and build the facility. The company is hoping for a commission decision in early 2027 and for Columbia Wind to be in commercial operation by the end of 2028, according to reporting by Urban Milwaukee.
Regulatory road ahead
The PSC application spells out a long list of required permits, technical studies and a decommissioning plan, and it notes that state law provides ways for a project to move forward even when local permits are withheld after a certificate is issued. The full application, including tables that estimate local revenue, decommissioning costs and shadow-flicker modeling, is available on the commission docket for anyone who wants to dig into the details, according to the Public Service Commission.
What to watch now: public comments and intervenor filings on the PSC docket, any town-level operating agreements that emerge, and whether Nordex turbine deliveries and union hiring actually materialize once shovels hit the ground. For Columbia County residents, the next year will go a long way toward deciding whether towering turbines become part of the everyday landscape or stay a lightning rod for local debate.
