Alliant Energy Corp. boosted its projected investments into renewable energy and battery storage through 2025 by half a billion dollars and put 325 MW of delayed solar capacity back on track for completion in 2022.
Citing recent progress with a solar equipment supplier, Alliant was able to pull forward approximately $300 million in renewable energy expenditures into 2022, Alliant CFO Robert Durian said on the company's Feb. 18 earnings call.
The supply chain progress will advance three solar projects under construction in Wisconsin, where the company serves customers through utility subsidiary Wisconsin Power and Light Co.
Alliant previously pushed back the project completion dates by a year or more because of uncertainty surrounding trade tariffs, part of the sweeping supply chain headwinds that have caused the delay of 13 GW of U.S. wind, solar and battery storage projects.
While challenges remain, "we have more confidence in our ability to execute on renewable projects going forward," Durian said.
Alliant will be able to complete the 325 MW of solar projects this year because in November 2021, the U.S. Commerce Department rejected a motion to investigate whether Chinese solar manufacturers had moved operations to Southeast Asia to evade U.S. import tariffs. That enabled supplier Trina Solar Co. Ltd. to ship panels from Malaysia without the risk of being hit by import tariffs of up to 250%, according to an Alliant spokesperson.
"What that did is it really allowed us to get back in touch with Trina and say, 'You know, we have a window here,'" Zac Fields, Alliant's lead investor relations analyst, said in a Feb. 18 interview.
Separately, the company increased its expected 2022-2025 capital expenditures by $305 million. Alliant plans to ratchet up its spending on renewables and energy storage by roughly $500 million to add another 300 MW while reducing its outlays on nonrenewable generation by "about a couple $100 million," Fields said.
The planned renewable and storage investments, targeted for 2023 to 2025, address capacity needs related to the Midcontinent ISO's seasonal resource adequacy proposal.
Wind, solar and battery projects account for 40% of Alliant's planned $6.1 billion in expenditures through 2025.
For 2022, Alliant estimated adjusted earnings of $2.67 to $2.81 per share. The midpoint of $2.74 would represent 6% growth from 2021.
The company reported fourth-quarter 2021 non-GAAP earnings of $88 million, or 35 cents per share, up from $60 million, or 24 cents per share. The S&P Capital IQ consensus normalized EPS estimate was 36 cents for the fourth quarter of 2021.
For full year 2021, Alliant reported non-GAAP earnings of $659 million, or $2.63 per share, up from $605 million, or $2.43 per share, in 2020. The S&P Capital IQ consensus normalized EPS estimate was $2.64 for the full year.
