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The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) has disappointed consumer advocates with a precedent-setting data center decision that sidesteps transparency and closes the door on public input. On October 31, DTE filed an ex parte application for approval of two special contracts to service a new hyperscale data center in Saline Township. In other words, DTE […]

As the growth of AI drives the race to build hyperscale data centers across the country, public concern about the environmental and economic impacts of those data centers is escalating rapidly. Data centers are resource-intensive, using tremendous amounts of land, water, and electricity. Their massive consumption of power threatens to slow or even reverse progress

In early 2025, Upper Peninsula Power Company (UPPCO) submitted two plans to the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC): one for how it will meet future energy needs (called an Integrated Resource Plan or IRP), and another for how it will meet renewable energy goals (called an Amended Renewable Energy Plan or AREP). These plans were

This week, the Citizens Utility Board of Michigan (CUB) released a report titled Power Struggle: Energy Insecurity in Michigan’s Low-Income Communities. The report takes a critical look at the current state of energy affordability and reliability for Michigan’s low-income families. Along with evaluating the efficacy of current state and investor-owned utility policies, the report issues

Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons As noted in previous blog posts, the Citizens Utility Board of Michigan (CUB) has been closely following efforts to expand Michigan’s electric transmission capacity through the planning and construction of two new transmission lines. These projects were proposed by the Michigan Electric Transmission Company (METC) in cases before the Michigan Public

Consumers Energy’s offices at One Energy Plaza, Jackson. Licensed Under Creative Commons License CC BY-SA 4.0.  On Tuesday, Sep 30, the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) approved a $157.5 million increase in Consumers Energy gas rates under docket U-21806. This will equate to an 8% increase in residential rates, down from the 12% increase the

The Citizens Utility Board of Michigan (CUB)—working with the Michigan Attorney General and the Sierra Club—was successful in saving Michigan ratepayers more than $3 million through intervention in a Power Supply Cost Recovery (PSCR) case before the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC). The case, U-21262, involved requests from Indiana Michigan Power Company (I&M) to recover

Earlier this year, the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) reopened Case No. U-20140 to review extreme weather condition policies that were established by each of Michigan’s regulated utilities in 2018. These policies are meant to protect Michigan households by providing criteria for the suspension of disconnections during periods of “extreme hot and cold weather,” which

Michigan electric utilities take longer to restore power to customers following outages than utilities in any other state, while also performing poorly on most other metrics related to reliability, affordability and the environment, according to this year’s edition of the Citizens Utility Board (CUB) of Michigan’s annual Utility Performance Report. Michigan utilities ranked 51st out

The Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), which manages the grid in most of Michigan and much of the central United States, has launched one of the most ambitious transmission expansion efforts in decades. Its Long-Range Transmission Plan (LRTP) calls for thousands of miles of new high-voltage lines, an effort which promises to deliver billions in