Wisconsin regulators: Data centers must cover full cost of their energy needs

  • April 24, 2026
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Wisconsin Watch | Paul Kiefer

Large data centers served by We Energies will pick up the entire tab for new power plants, solar farms and other generators needed to power the massive structures in eastern Wisconsin. 

But the full picture of a payment structure the Wisconsin Public Service Commission unanimously approved Friday is more complex. 

The new agreement, among the first of its kind in the Midwest,“has the potential to fundamentally reshape the utility system,” Commissioner Kristy Nieto said. It will set a  precedent for how the utility will divide the costs and benefits of the vast generation buildout needed to support new data centers, including campuses set to open in Port Washington and Mount Pleasant.

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