Research Update: Alliant Energy Corp., Subsidiary Ratings Affirmed; Outlooks Revised To Negative From Stable On Weaker Financial Measures

Alliant Energy Corp. (AEC) recently disclosed capital spending plans totaling close to $7 billion through 2022. We expect AEC subsidiary Wisconsin Power and Light Co. (WP&L; about 45% of AEC's consolidated EBITDA) to operate under a rate freeze through 2020, as per a rate case settlement. As a result, we are revising our financial risk profile assessment on WP&L to significant from intermediate. We expect AEC's financial measures to weaken over the next few years, resulting in minimal cushion under our ratings downside trigger of 15%. We are affirming our ratings on AEC and subsidiaries WP&L and Interstate Power and Light Co. (IP&L). We are revising the outlook on those entities to negative from stable. The negative outlook reflects our

...+ Alliant Energy Corp. (AEC) recently disclosed capital spending plans totaling close to $7 billion through 2022. + We expect AEC subsidiary Wisconsin Power and Light Co. (WP&L; about 45% of AEC's consolidated EBITDA) to operate under a rate freeze through 2020, as per a rate case settlement. As a result, we are revising our financial risk profile assessment on WP&L to significant from intermediate. + We expect AEC's financial measures to weaken over the next few years, resulting in minimal cushion under our ratings downside trigger of 15%. + We are affirming our ratings on AEC and subsidiaries WP&L and Interstate Power and Light Co. (IP&L). We are revising the outlook on those entities to negative from stable. + The negative outlook reflects our expectation of weaker consolidated financial measures for AEC that we expect to persist for 2018-2020 as the company executes its elevated capital spending plan while one of its major regulated subsidiaries, WP&L, operates under a base-rate freeze...

Research Update