Cedar Rapids steam system fades into sunset

Alliant Energy's temporary system is history after the last customer, Quaker Oats, dropped off the system, an Alliant spokesman confirmed.

Alliant Energy disconnected the temporary boilers that it brought in to maintain its flood-ravaged steam system in April, company spokesman Ryan Stensland said.

Quaker Oats was the last customer on the system. Stensland said the temporary steam plant was only kept in operation until April to provide a backup as Quaker Oats, believed to be the world's largest cereal mill, worked out reliability issues with its new steam boilers.

A few former Alliant steam customers are continuing to operate temporary steam boilers while they get their new steam systems up and running.

One of the last large users, Mercy Medical Center, recently completed construction of its new steam plant. An open house for the energy-efficient steam plant, funded primarily with a $4 million Economic Development Administration Grant, was held on Wednesday, August 18.

Alliant Energy's steam system was one of the last of a dwindling number of “municipal steam” systems nationwide that provided inexpensive steam for heat and industrial processes.

The company confirmed in a conference call with stock analysts last week that it plans to decommission the Sixth Street Generating Station in Cedar Rapids, which manufactured the steam by burning coal and natural gas.

Stensland said the company has not decided what to do with the building and the plant site.

“We just know we're not going to return it to pre-flood condition,” Stensland said.

The record June 2008 flooding on the Cedar River inundated the plant, ruining its boilers. Alliant Energy decided not to rebuild the plant after failing to to obtain enough long-term steam purchase contracts from customers at the costs deemed necessary to fund reconstruction.