With all the talk about data centers in Wisconsin, you might be wondering: where does our electricity actually come from?

About forty percent is natural gas. Another thirty percent is coal — down from sixty percent just ten years ago. The Point Beach nuclear plant provides about fifteen percent. And renewables — solar, wind, and hydro — make up around twelve percent. Solar doubled last year alone.

Why is solar growing so fast? Because it's now cheaper to build a new solar farm than a new coal or gas plant — even without tax credits. That's according to Lazard, one of Wall Street's oldest investment banks.

The catch is that the sun doesn't shine at night. That's why Wisconsin just brought its first large-scale battery storage facility online in Kenosha County. Near Portage, the nation's first utility-scale CO2 battery is under construction. More projects are in the pipeline across the state.

The mix is shifting. The question is how fast.

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Wisconsin's electricity mix (2024): Natural gas ~40%, coal ~32% (down from 61% in 2014), nuclear ~15% (Point Beach), solar ~4%, wind ~3%, hydro ~3%, biomass ~1%. Coal was surpassed by gas for the first time in 2022. (EIA Wisconsin State Energy Profile)

Solar doubled in Wisconsin. Solar generation more than doubled from 2023 to 2024. It became the state's largest renewable contributor for the first time, providing 41% of renewable generation. The 250 MW Darien Solar Energy Center came online in March 2025. (EIA)

Solar is now cheaper than gas or coal for new builds. The EIA's Annual Energy Outlook 2025 found solar PV LCOE is lower than natural gas combined-cycle on average for new plants. Lazard's 2025 analysis confirmed that unsubsidized utility-scale solar is cheaper than new natural gas. Solar LCOE: $29-92/MWh. Gas combined cycle: $61-93/MWh. Coal: $69-169/MWh. (EIA AEO2025; Lazard via pv magazine)

Battery storage is arriving in Wisconsin:

• Paris Solar-Battery Park (Kenosha County): Wisconsin's first large-scale battery storage. 110 MW storage + 200 MW solar. Online June 2025. (WPR)
• Columbia Energy Storage Project (near Portage): Nation's first utility-scale CO2 battery. 20 MW/200 MWh, 10-hour duration. Using Energy Dome technology. Operational by 2027. Located at the site of the retiring Columbia coal plant. (Utility Dive; Alliant Energy)
• More in the pipeline: Black Mountain (Milwaukee, 300 MW/1,200 MWh), Tern (Green Bay, 200 MW/800 MWh), Koshkonong Solar + 165 MW BESS (Dane County). (Renewable Energy World)

Wisconsin imports all its fossil fuels. The state has zero coal mines, zero oil fields, and zero natural gas wells. All coal is imported (primarily from Wyoming's Powder River Basin via rail), all natural gas from Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Kansas, and Canada. Wisconsin spends roughly $14 billion/year on imported fossil fuels. (RENEW Wisconsin)

Data center demand is driving new construction. Six or more major data centers are planned or under construction in Wisconsin. The Port Washington facility alone would need 1.3 GW of power. Utilities are building billions of dollars in new infrastructure to meet this demand. (Wisconsin Watch)

Related Civic Minute segments: The Sun Doesn't Send a Bill (CM-30), Point Beach, Kewaunee, and the Nuclear Question (CM-40), Who Decides Your Electric Bill? (CM-39)