DTE Energy says its proposed long-term energy plan, not yet filed with utility regulators, will keep electricity reliable and bills as low as possible.
The utility said the plan, known as an Integrated Resource Plan, or IRP, anticipates much higher electricity demand in the future — which it will meet with an "all of the above," resource mix, including updating its Fermi II nuclear power plant, dramatically increasing solar and long term storage, and constructing two new natural gas plants.
Despite the two new plants, DTE said it will remain on track to meet Michigan's 2040 energy goal of net zero carbon emissions.
But critics said there's something very risky built into the plan: data centers.
Bryan Smigielski is with Sierra Club of Michigan. He said the planned power plants will likely serve the electricity requirements of power-hungry, financially risky data centers.
Smigielski said his group will ask the Michigan Public Service Commission, which oversees utilities in the state, to require DTE to make that connection transparent, by modeling future energy needs with no data centers in their analysis, and comparing that to future energy needs including data centers.
"We just want to see them be very transparent about who's causing the need for additional generation in our state or in our region. And we all know it's data centers," Smigielski said. "I think if we can get this clear modeling done, it'll say that pretty clearly."
He said residential customers could be left paying the entire bill for an unneeded natural gas plant, if some data centers are unable to make a profit and go bankrupt.
For example, Smigielski said, Oracle, one of the companies building a mega data center in Saline Township, is rated BBB-, just above junk bonds.
"Why are we taking on those risks when a bank likely would not even take on those risks," Smigielski asked. "If they do go belly up, then we have a big gas plant with billions of dollars to pay, and that's enough of a financial burden that it could profoundly impact our economy."
DTE president and CEO Joi Harris said the plan would be $3.5 billion less expensive than the company’s previous IRP from 2022, after accounting for changed laws and other factors since then.
"We're building a stronger tomorrow for Michigan's children and grandchildren," she said.
"We listened closely to our customers throughout this process, and this plan reflects what they told us matters most to them: reliable power, affordable bills and a practical path to a cleaner energy future. It balances those priorities while ensuring Michigan has the energy it needs to continue growing for decades to come."
