Wisconsin electric rates in focus as Microsoft plans 15 new data centers

Local authorities in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin gave the green light Monday for Microsoft to expand its data center footprint on the site originally planned for a Foxconn factory. The approval for 15 new data centers comes as state regulators weigh changes to electricity rates from the regional utility company, We Energies. 

Microsoft’s 15 new data centers are billed at $13 billion of taxable value, on top of $7 billion in data centers already under construction in Mount Pleasant. The project will create thousands of construction jobs over the next decade and several hundred permanent jobs for technicians and engineers. The potential property tax revenue makes data centers an attractive economic engine, even if the amount of permanent jobs is modest compared to the size of facilities.

As data centers look to expand, the biggest barrier is…