Analysis: Wisconsin’s For-Profit Electric Utilities Hike Rates More Than Public Utilities

Oak Creek Power Plant. Photo taken November 13, 2021 by Dave Reid. Last week, the Wisconsin state utility regulator approved two more years of rate hikes for two of the state’s largest for-profit electric utilities. These hikes continue a trend of large increases dating back to 2020. No doubt the cost factors that go into rising rates are varied and complex, but Wisconsin’s mix of electricity providers offers a simple way to compare electricity costs. The state is covered by three different kinds of electric utilities. A few large investor-owned companies cover most of the state’s population, but dozens of cities operate their own municipally owned electric utilities, and more than two dozen member-owned cooperatives provide service to rural areas where for-profit investment was originally seen as unviable. Map of Wisconsin electric service territories (click for full-size image) Costs like labor inflation, commodity prices and grid maintenance presumably affect all utilities more or l