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Several solar energy projects across Wisconsin are facing community pushback, including two large projects being opposed by local governments. Town officials in northeast and central Wisconsin communities have come out against two utility-scale solar projects proposed in their communities. And village officials in south central Wisconsin delayed a vote on a small solar project after an hours-long public hearing.

The debate comes as a bill in the state Legislature would require local governments sign off on major solar or wind projects in their communities before state regulators.

Two of the big projects facing pushback include Fox Solar Project in the town of Morgan in Oconto County, and the Akron Solar Project in the town of Rome in Adams County and the town of Saratoga in Wood County. Both are being developed by Florida-based NextEra Energy Resources and require state approval but not local approval.

The Fox Solar Project would generate 100 megawatts, while the Akron Solar Project would generate 200 megawatts. For context, 100 megawatts of solar energy can power around 15,332 homes in Wisconsin.

A $1.4 billion transmission line project is being proposed to help support a planned data center development in Port Washington. American Transmission Company wants to build new transmission lines, rebuild existing lines, and build new substations across several counties, according to a recent application with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin. The project would help meet the energy demand for a data center development in Port Washington.

“The Project is needed to reliably serve a load interconnection request by We Energies to serve a new large load addition in the Port Washington area,” the application said.

The four data center buildings are expected to need 1.3 gigawatts of electricity.  The developer behind the project is Vantage Data Centers.

Alliant Energy and QTS Data Centers (“QTS”) have announced an agreement in principle to expand renewable energy resources across Wisconsin, lowering the cost for Alliant Energy’s planned renewable facilities. This proposed agreement will be facilitated by the sale of Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) from approximately 750 megawatts of new renewable energy sources, which will help meet the growing energy needs of Wisconsin and support sustainable growth across the state, all while providing long-term benefits for Alliant Energy customers. 

“As an essential service provider in communities across Wisconsin, we take great pride in meeting customers’ energy needs as cost-effectively as possible,” said Raja Sundararajan, Executive Vice President Strategy and Customer Solutions, Alliant Energy. “Based on projections and identified trends, adding a mix of energy generation to our balanced portfolio, including wind, natural gas and energy storage, will serve increasing customer energy demands and ensure reliability.”

The partnership supports the addition of new renewable energy necessary for economic development across Wisconsin and enables Alliant Energy to lower costs of planned renewable facilities, bringing benefits to customers. 

To meet expected surges in energy demand from data centers, We Energies is asking state regulators to approve a multi-billion-dollar plan to add almost 3 gigawatts of power to the electric grid.

The utility plans to build and take ownership stakes in seven planned solar projects and one battery project. It also wants to do the same with two new natural gas power plants, as well as to make upgrades to existing power facilities.

Those plans need to be approved by the state Public Service Commission. We Energies says the renewable projects will send energy to the grid every day while the natural gas plants will be used primarily during peak demand times.

A $700 million natural gas pipeline enhancement project designed to improve reliability and meet rising demand came online in Wisconsin and northern Illinois at the start of the month.

TC Energy, a Canadian company with a U.S. headquarters in Texas, announced the completion of the project last month. 

The “Wisconsin Reliability Project” replaced about 51 miles of aging pipeline across Wisconsin and northern Illinois with modern infrastructure. The company said the change would improve safety and reliability.

TC Energy also upgraded natural gas compression facilities in Kewaskum and Weyauwega, as well as meter stations in Lena, Merrill, Oshkosh, South Wausau, Stevens Point, and Two Rivers. The company received approvals from federal regulators for the project in 2023 and 2024. Construction began last year, and the project came into service on November 1.

Xcel Energy plans to build the Midwest’s largest battery energy storage site at the Sherco Energy Hub in central Minnesota. The project is among a series of investments that will strengthen the region’s energy security and expand the company’s investment at Sherco and beyond.

“We’re making a significant investment in battery storage because we see it as a critical part of Minnesota’s energy future,” according to Bria Shea, President of Xcel Energy-Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. “Batteries help us store energy when it’s inexpensive to produce and dispatch it when needed, allowing us to continue delivering reliable electricity to customers while keeping bills low.”

The proposal, filed with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, will:

• Double the amount of battery storage adjacent to the Sherco coal plant in Becker, which is scheduled to retire by the end of 2030. The Commission previously approved 300 megawatts of storage. The new proposal increases the capacity to 600 megawatts.

• Add 135.5 megawatts of battery storage at the company’s Blue Lake facility in Shakopee.

• Expand the company’s Sherco Solar facility with an additional 200-megawatt solar array in Clear Lake Township.

If approved, the company intends to start construction on the battery storage projects in 2026, with the batteries serving customers by late 2027. The projects will use lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery cell technology, which has a strong track record for reliability and safety. LFP batteries discharge energy in four-hour increments and are quick to recharge, allowing for regular use.

Alliant Energy has announced U.S. generally accepted accounting principles consolidated unaudited earnings per share  of $1.09 for the third quarter of 2025, compared to $1.15 for the same quarter in 2024. The ongoing earnings per share for the third quarter were $1.12, compared to $1.15 in the same quarter in 2024.

For the first nine months of 2025, Alliant Energy reported EPS of $2.59, a 23.3 percent increase from $2.10 for the same period in 2024. The ongoing EPS for the first nine months of 2025 were $2.62, a 12.4 percent increase from $2.33 in the same period in 2024. Based on results for the first nine months of 2025, ongoing earnings per share guidance was narrowed to $3.17 to $3.23, with full year 2025 earnings trending toward the upper-half of this range.

Alliant Energy’s utilities Interstate Power and Light Company (IPL) and Wisconsin Power and Light Company (WPL) now have 3 gigawatts of contracted demand from data centers with the inclusion of the recently executed electric service agreement (ESA) for 900 megawatts for the QTS Madison site. With the signed agreement, Alliant Energy expects its peak energy demand to grow an industry leading 50 percent by 2030. The energy resources to serve this expected load, while maintaining safe and reliable service to all customers, have increased the Company’s forecasted capital expenditures for 2026 - 2029 to $13.4 billion.

The Company announced 2026 earnings guidance at $3.36 to $3.46 per share, continuing its strong 10-year track record of compound annual earnings growth of 6%. Also, Alliant Energy has increased its 2026 expected annual common stock dividend target to $2.14 per share.

MGE Energy's third-quarter 2025 earnings were $44.5 million, or $1.22 per share, a year-over-year increase from $40.9 million, or $1.13 per share, in the third quarter of 2024. The increase was driven by rate base investment growth, particularly from new renewable energy projects, and non-utility investment gains. The company reported quarterly revenue of $175.7 million.

The Board of Directors of WEC Energy Group has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.8925 cents per share on the company's common stock.

The dividend is payable December 1, 2025, to stockholders of record on November 14, 2025. This marks the 333rd consecutive quarter — dating back to 1942 — that the company will have paid a dividend to its stockholders.