FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: October 14, 2026
Contact: Megan Wittman, megan.wittman@sierraclub.org
Sierra Club Wisconsin: PSC Greenlights Health Issues and Pollution with Construction Approval of New Gas Plants to Power Data Centers
WISCONSIN – Today, the Wisconsin Public Service Commission (PSC) took the first step to approve construction permits for the Red Oak Ridge Energy Center, a 1.1 GW gas power plant in Kenosha County, and the Foundry Ridge Energy Center, a 324 MW gas plant in Walworth County. Both plants are likely to be purchased by We Energies and will power the Mt Pleasant and Port Washington data centers under the Very Large Customer and Bespoke Resources Tariffs. This decision comes just after We Energies applied for a seventh gas plant proposal in the last five years. The plants will cause significant air pollution and substantial health harm to nearby communities. A report by the Climate Solutions for Health Lab at the University of Wisconsin-Madison estimates that the two plants will kill approximately 122 people and cause $1.43 billion in health damages.
Despite the guardrails established by the PSC for We Energies’ Tariffs, the utility– which made more than $1 billion in record profits last year– is still pursuing higher costs for customers next year, increasing people’s utility bills by 14% over the next two years. If approved, it would be We Energies’ sixth rate increase since 2020. Adding this much demand for gas raises concerns about gas prices, which are already volatile, at a time when energy bills are skyrocketing.
During the discussion of the record for Red Oak Ridge and Foundry Ridge, all three Commissioners identified how current state laws have limited the scope of what they can consider in these gas plant cases. Commissioners pointed to the merchant energy plant process, the inability for the PSC to consider health and air impacts, and the lack of long-range Integrated Resource Planning as limitations that state legislators could address.
In response, Cassie Steiner, Senior Campaign Coordinator, released the following statement:
“Communities across the state have been outspoken against data centers and powering data centers with fossil fuels. The Commissioners have protected residents by passing a Very Large Customer Tariff that will require data centers to pay for their infrastructure and fuel costs. However, gas plants will cost residents through health harms and pollution. The majority of public comments opposed both of these gas plants. Fossil fuel electricity already accounts for 73 percent of Wisconsin’s annual water use, causes life-threatening health issues, and exacerbates climate change. Powering data centers with gas plants adds insult to injury.
“Today’s decision by the PSC not only disregards the will of Wisconsinites, but puts the people nearby these plants at tremendous risk for devastating health effects and more pollution.”
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