Advanced energy resources provide efficient, reliable and low-cost alternatives to expensive fossil fuel generation, and they are ready to help power Wisconsin’s grid and meet rising electricity demand. To keep energy costs affordable for current residents and businesses looking to expand in the Badger State, Wisconsin’s leaders and utilities need to leverage these clean energy tools.  

Yet, We Energies has proposed spending more than $1.9 billion on new natural gas facilities. The most expensive part of its plan involves a $1.2 billion natural gas plant in Oak Creek. The company itself says this plant will only be used 10-20% of the time. In this proposal, WEC downplayed energy efficiency measures and other modern means of addressing energy demand, leaving important tools on the table and failing to offer solutions that would be more efficient and would help keep costs down for residents. 

Wisconsin needs reliable power throughout the year. Fortunately, lower-cost, clean energy technologies and demand-response and efficiency programs are ready to meet Wisconsin’s growing energy demand. We Energies should embrace these market-ready, commercially available technologies that maintain grid stability, curb rate increases and attract business development. 

Instead of new expensive plants, focus on helping save energy

Energy efficiency is the simplest, lowest cost way to take a bite out of the growing demand for energy. Wisconsin’s Focus on Energy program represents the minimum that utilities must do to reduce energy demand through energy efficiency. The Focus on Energy program is a baseline for utilizing clean, efficient energy resources. However, in defense of its billion-dollar proposal, We Energies insists that it should not be expected to promote energy efficiency beyond the minimum required by law. 

There are resources already found in homes and businesses that can be utilized with modern technology to help efficiently meet the needs of the electric grid. For instance, modern thermostats, modern water heaters and rooftop solar panels with battery storage can be operated in a coordinated manner to help meet near-term energy demand, while also allowing the device owners to be compensated for helping defer or potentially even eliminate the need for costly gas projects.

While it takes years to construct one new gas plant, the U.S. Department of Energy said in a January 2025 report that programs utilizing these modern technologies can be implemented in just six months. Around the country, including in Arizona, California, Texas and Vermont, utilities are benefiting from this technology. Yet, when asked whether it had considered such customer-friendly methods of meeting demand before proposing its $1.2 billion Oak Creek plan, the company responded that it had not considered this lower-cost option. 

Unfortunately, the billion-dollar plan for Oak Creek downplays modern solutions and focuses on outdated, less efficient methods that maximize financial benefits for the utility company rather than embrace innovation that benefits customers. Rather than increase exposure to volatile gas costs, it should take this opportunity to leverage existing clean energy resources to meet projected demand more affordably and on a faster timeline than that proposed for the Oak Creek facility.