WEC Energy capital plan jumps to $47.5 billion on Microsoft and Oracle data center demand

WEC Energy lifted its five-year capital plan to $47.5 billion on Thursday, a $10 billion increase over the prior plan, and put most of the added spending on new Microsoft and Oracle data center construction in Wisconsin. The utility also raised and narrowed its 2026 earnings guidance to $5.60 to $5.64 per share, from a prior range of $5.51 to $5.61, citing the strength of the very large customer buildout.

The numbers tie the utility directly to the AI infrastructure cycle. WEC expects electric demand to grow 4.9 gigawatts between 2026 and 2031, a one-gigawatt increase over the prior plan, and the majority of the new capital spending is being driven and paid for by very large customers under a tariff designed to keep their costs off other ratepayers.

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Microsoft remains the anchor. The company has bought more than 2,200 acres in the I-94 corridor south of Milwaukee for its Mount Pleasant data center complex, adding 70 acres just last week, and WEC is now planning to serve forecast demand of 3.2 gigawatts in that region through 2031, up 600 megawatts from the previous plan, with opportunity for further expansion. The first facility at the site is already operating and construction is underway on additional facilities, WEC executives said on the earnings call.

Oracle is the second pillar, developed for it by Vantage Data Centers on roughly 1,900 acres north of Milwaukee. Construction continues on the initial phase, and Vantage expects to invest $15 billion to complete that phase in 2028, according to the utility. WEC carries 1.3 gigawatts of demand for that site in its forecast through 2031, with potential to reach 3.5 gigawatts over time.

For the broader framework, see our crude oil coverage.

Related reading: AI Data Center Orders Reach 100 MW, but Plans Are Not Demand.

The scale shows up in the financial plan. Over the next five years WEC expects to generate $26 billion to $27 billion in cash from operations, which funds more than half of its needs. It plans $19 billion in incremental debt, including hybrid instruments, and $5 billion to $5.5 billion of common equity. The company kept common equity needs roughly flat with the prior plan even though total capex rose by $10 billion, because cash returns during construction for very large customer projects are now expected to be higher, the CFO said on the call.

The very large customer tariff matters for the equity story. Those customers' projects carry a return on equity of 10.48% to 10.98%, and assets dedicated to them are projected to represent almost 30% of WEC's total asset base by 2031. The updated plan supports asset base growth at a 13.4% compound annual rate, enough to drive compound EPS growth of 7% to 9-plus percent from 2027 to 2031, based off the midpoint of the original 2026 guidance.

Related reading: Meta Q3 2026 Earnings: Capex Floor Raised to $135 Billion as New Share Class Funds AI Spend.

The quarter itself was clean. WEC reported third-quarter net income of $389.3 million, or $1.18 per share, up from $271.3 million, or 83 cents per share, a year earlier, helped by warmer-than-normal weather, capital plan execution and operating efficiency. For the nine months ended September 30 the company earned $1.49 billion, or $4.54 per share, up from $1.24 billion, or $3.85 per share, and consolidated revenues totaled $7.8 billion, up $523.9 million from the same period in 2025.

There is a second pillar to growth beyond the hyperscalers. WEC executives pointed to local industrial expansion from companies like Generac and Modine adding jobs across the service territory, and they expect the data center growth to extend beyond 2031, noting additional demand may land in 2032 and 2033. Management flagged it is making progress with another unnamed very large customer and said more details would come later.

Related reading: Google Locks In 702 MW of Fuel-Cell Power From AEP for Its AI Data Centers.

The dividend stays in the picture. WEC expects to grow its dividend at a rate of 6.5% to 7%, consistent with past practice, which implies a payout ratio of 60% to 70% given the faster forecast earnings per share growth. The company will provide its 2027 dividend plan and earnings guidance in December, according to the call.

For the AI-markets read, the takeaway is the loop running from capacity to capex to cash. WEC is not building compute itself, but its capital plan is now a direct transfer mechanism from hyperscaler AI investment into electric transmission and generation in the Midwest. That is the same power constraint that has been the binding input across the AI trade, showing up now in a regulated utility's multi-billion-dollar numbers rather than in a chipmaker's guidance.

The bearish counterpoint is execution and timing. The 4.9 gigawatts of demand is a forecast, the 3.5 gigawatt Oracle upside is not yet in the plan, and the company is front-running demand with long lead time generation equipment before all of the economics are fully visible. If hyperscaler buildout slips or the very large customer tariff is adjusted, the equity funding math and the EPS growth range would both move. What is dated next is the Wisconsin Commission filing on the full project details, expected in the coming months, before the final piece of the plan is fully priced.

Sources: WEC Energy Group Q3 2026 earnings release (October 29, 2026, via SEC EDGAR); WEC Energy Group Q3 2026 earnings call transcript (October 29, 2026); Yahoo Finance price data (October 30, 2026, 00:05 UTC).

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