Oak Creek We Energies natural gas plant; public hearings Tuesday

OAK CREEK, Wis. — New plans for a natural gas power plant in Oak Creek are causing a debate. Two public hearings will be held on Tuesday, March 25, regarding the proposal from We Energies to build a new natural gas power plant.

The hearings will be held at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. at the Oak Creek Community Center. 

Natural gas plant

What we know:

We Energies is proposing a new megawatt natural gas plant for its Oak Creek facility that would cost a little more than $1 billion. The plan is to have it up and running around 2028.

The company wants to shift out its current coal plants by the end of 2032.

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We Energies plans to invest in both natural gas and renewable energy projects, with $9.1 billion in new renewable energy by 2029.

We Energies said the majority of power would still come from wind and solar and the new plants would only run 10–20% of the time.

Pushback

What they’re saying:

Healthy Climate Wisconsin board member Victoria Gillet said solar and wind would be more reliable power sources if they had more investment.

“I am not excited about the proposal,” said Healthy Climate Wisconsin board member Victoria Gillet. “Gas is the second worst after coal. We deserve a good outcome, not something that’s slightly better than the horrible coal that’s been ruining our community for so long.”

The other side:

Meanwhile, We Energies Executive Vice President Dan Krueger said natural gas is a great way to fill the void for power when renewables are not enough.

“Our primary job is reliability,” Krueger said. “They will step in when there’s not enough power from the solar and the wind and they’ll come right back off when the wind blows or the sun shines.”