WEC Energy Group’s second-quarter earnings call zeroed in on the new natural gas and solar generation the company plans to bolster Wisconsin’s economic resurgence.
WEC Energy Group CEO Scott Lauber said a surge in economic activity in Wisconsin underscores the need for the company’s largest-ever, $24 billion, five-year capital plan.
He said the plan as it stands today focuses on “low-risk and highly executable” projects heavy on natural gas and solar generation.
Lauber said at the end of May, WEC Energy Group closed on its second option at Alliant Energy’s 730-MW West Riverside Energy Center, which has the company trading $100 million for 100 MW of combined cycle natural gas generation.
He also reminded shareholders the company will spend a total of $2.1 billion on 1.2 GW in natural gas generation at its existing Paris and Oak Creek power plant sites. That amount includes a 2-billion-cubic-foot LNG storage facility and a 33-mile gas line to serve the Oak Creek site, which is planned to be converted from coal to gas over multiple years with construction of a combustion turbine plant.
Lauber said the company continues to make meaningful progress on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. He pointed out that in May, the company shuttered coal Units 5 and 6 at the Oak Creek plant, representing more than 500 MW.
“Including these units, since 2018, we have retired nearly 2,500 MW of older, fossil fuel generation,” Lauber said.
Lauber said the company hopes for a decision from the Wisconsin Public Service Commission before the end of the year to spend $580 million to purchase a 90% ownership interest in Invenergy’s 300-MW High Noon Solar Energy Center in southern Wisconsin. High Noon features 300 MW of solar generation and 165 MW of battery storage and is planned to begin operating in 2026.
He said WEC Energy Group’s infrastructure segment expects two more solar farms it will have majority stakes in to come online by the end of the year. Invenergy’s 300-MW Delilah I solar project northeast of Dallas was delayed from its original operational date in June by damage from a hailstorm in northeast Texas. WEC plans to spend about $460 million for a 90% ownership interest in the farm. WEC also will invest $360 million for an 80% ownership interest in Invenergy’s 250-MW Maple Flats solar farm in Illinois.
Meanwhile, Lauber said Microsoft is making “good progress” on its data center campus in southeast Wisconsin.
Microsoft announced in spring that southeast Wisconsin will be the site of a $3.3 billion investment in cloud computing and AI infrastructure through the end of 2026.
Lauber said the company is formulating a refreshed five-year capital plan that he plans to share in the fall that accounts for more data center development.
“We are currently working with Microsoft and developing our plans for our next five-year plan,” Lauber said.
He said WEC Energy Group so far has contemplated only the energy needs of Microsoft’s first 315-acre purchase on the southeast Wisconsin site. Microsoft last fall purchased an additional 1,030 acres, and this week bought a further 173 acres in the area.
“We’ve been working with Microsoft on the needs for the area. Wisconsin’s got a lot of development opportunities, and we want to make sure we hit the capacity requirements we need for the area to support the growth — not just Microsoft, but all the other growth we’re seeing in the region,” Lauber said.
Lauber pledged more filings to add renewable capacity soon. He also said the company is focused on Transmission Co.’s transmission expansion plans in Wisconsin, as well as its own growing distribution needs.
“We’re factoring all that in as we pull together our five-year plan,” he said.
Lauber also said the company hopes for a decision from the Wisconsin PSC by the end of the year on a requested $800 million in electric and gas rate hikes for We Energies and Wisconsin Public Service customers. If approved, a residential customer’s bill would rise by $10 to $11 over 2025 and 2026. Citizens Utility Board has said the proposed increase would drive energy costs too high.
During the quarter, WEC Energy Group reported net income of $211.3 million ($0.67/share), down from $289.7 million ($0.92/share) in the second quarter last year, a 25-cent/share decrease year over year. Revenues were bruised by a warm end of winter, storms and higher operating costs and interest rates.
