MEDIA CONTACT:
Phoebe Sweet, press@utilityactionalliance.org
We Energies touts its ‘leadership in decarbonization,’ commitment to renewable energy, yet proposes new gas plant costing $2 billion in customer rates, up to $200 million in health harms
MADISON, WI — The Utility Action Alliance (UAA) today launched an advertising campaign in response to We Energies’ request to build a new methane gas plant for electricity generation and to counter its misinformation campaign falsely touting its commitment to renewable energy generation and naming itself a “leader in decarbonization.” UAA’s six-figure radio, digital and billboard ad buy calls on the Wisconsin Public Service Commission (PSC) to reject We Energies’ request and thanks Governor Tony Evers for his commitment to achieving 100% carbon-free electricity by 2050.
We Energies has requested permission from the PSC to build a new methane gas plant in southeast Wisconsin, which would cost customers $2 billion. The company suggests the plant would help meet rising electricity demands, including from power-hungry data centers, yet renewable sources of electricity generation, such as solar, wind, and battery storage are faster and cheaper to build.
The UAA radio ad highlights the proposed methane gas plant’s misalignment with climate targets and the steep price tag that will be paid for by ratepayers. The ad also notes the costs go beyond high utility bills alone, as unhealthy air pollution from the plant could result in nearly $200 million in health costs such as new asthma cases, ER visits and premature deaths, according to a recent analysis.
The request for the methane gas plant has been met with opposition from community members and customers and comes on the heels of the Trump administration’s recent actions to fast track the build-out of fossil fuels. Yet even gas companies weren’t eager to embrace the “drill baby drill” agenda as the cost of methane gas is too low to drive significant corporate profits. However, for-profit utility corporations like We Energies are eager to invest in infrastructure projects like methane gas plants as they’re able to bill it directly to customers as an “operational expense” while making record-breaking profits for shareholders enabled by a rate of return higher than the national average. Wisconsin investor-owned utilities already get the fifth highest profit rates in the country.
We Energies request stands in stark opposition to the for-profit utility corporation’s stated commitment to provide “affordable, reliable and clean energy” by investing more than $9 billion in renewables like solar, wind and battery storage by 2029, with the goal to “achieve net-zero carbon emissions from its generation fleet by 2050.”
