Dive Brief:

• For the first time in three years, Alliant Energy's two utilities – Interstate Power & Light in Iowa and Wisconsin Power & Light – saw an increase in residential sales in 2013, company officials said during a conference call with analysts.
• Overall, weather-normalized sales were flat last year in Iowa, but Alliant expects sales to increase 1.5% this year. In Wisconsin, sales jumped 2.2% last year and the company expects to see a 0.2% decline this year, partly because last year saw unusually high agricultural sales.
• Alliant expects to need roughly 300 MW in Wisconsin in 2019 to replace retiring coal units and meet demand growth, officials said.

Dive Insight:

After several years of flat and declining sales, Alliant's utilities are starting to see sales growth. The company is confident growth will continue this year.

WPL is studying the need for new generation in Wisconsin. “WPL is conducting a feasibility study of resource options,” Patricia Kampling, Alliant chairman, president and CEO, said. “We plan to issue a request for proposal in the second quarter of this year to determine what available options are in the region.”