Microsoft has signed a power purchase agreement with Minneapolis-based
National Grid Renewables for the
Portage Solar Project located in the towns of Grant and Plover in Portage County in central Wisconsin.
“It's exciting to see business development and economic growth in our neighboring state of Wisconsin," said
Blake Nixon, president of National Grid Renewables. "Through our contract with Microsoft, we are providing Wisconsin residents direct and indirect revenue streams from Portage Solar. The project will not only benefit the local communities through the production of new tax revenue and job creation, but it also contributes a clean, sustainable energy solution for years to come.”
As part of the deal, National Grid Renewables will donate
$20 million over the term of the agreement to a community fund that supports under-resourced communities and communities disproportionately impacted by pollution.
NG Renewables originally applied for approvals for the project with the state Public Service Commission in early 2022. Discussions with landowners started as early as the fourth quarter of 2019. Company officials described the project as an initial capital investment of about $290 million in 2022 testimony to the PSC.
The PSC approved the project in April 2023 with construction expected to begin that summer and finish by summer 2024. National Grid Renewables has since asked for an extension to begin construction and now has until October 2025 to begin work.
Microsoft’s energy sources have received increased interest as the company plans to invest $3.3 billion in its data center campus in Mount Pleasant.
When Microsoft announced those plans it said it would partner with National Grid Renewables on a solar project but did not specify the location. The PPA announced Tuesday solidifies those plans.
Power purchase agreements are generally used to match or offset the power used in data centers, helping companies meet clean energy targets.
Microsoft is also working with
We Energies to negotiate electricity rates for the data center campus, which is expected to be the largest electric load served by the utility once it is complete.
“Microsoft understands that reliable and resilient energy supply is critical for all utility customers, and Microsoft is committed to paying its own way for assets built to provide that service to the data center campus in Mount Pleasant,” an attorney for the company wrote in a letter to the PSC on Tuesday as part of We Energies’ ongoing rate case.
