Foundry Ridge Energy Center - proposed gas plant
Public comments are being accepted until
THURSDAY, JULY 23, 2026.
Before Submitting: Please note that the PSC allows only one comment per person in this proceeding. Submitting a written comment means you should not also testify at the hearing. You may still attend or observe the hearing without speaking.You may either testify at the July 16 public hearing—in person, by Zoom, or by telephone—or submit one written comment by July 23. You may attend or observe the hearing without speaking and still submit a written comment afterward.
Important Dates & Details:
Public Hearing: Thursday, July 16, 2026
Sessions: 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. CT
Location: Darien Public Library, 47 Park Street, Darien
Written Comment Deadline: Thursday, July 23, 2026
PSC Docket: 9835-CE-100
Follow the Foundry Ridge Energy Center proposal through PSC Docket 9835-CE-100, including public records, environmental concerns, hearing updates, comment deadlines, and questions about what the project could mean for nearby families, schools, farmland, water, and wildlife.
The hearing is an opportunity for members of the public to speak directly to the Public Service Commission. The Village of Darien notes that there will not be a formal presentation or debate, but members of the public will be given an opportunity to speak, and comments will be reviewed by PSC officials as part of their decision-making process.
Click the link above to access the official hearing notice or scroll down this page to read more details about the Foundry Ridge Energy Center project.
PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION OF WISCONSIN
Application of Foundry Ridge Energy Center LLC for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to Construct and Operate the Foundry Ridge Energy Center, Consisting of Three Natural Gas-Fired Single-Cycle Combustion Turbines Capable of Generating up to 324 MW, 138 kV Generator Tie Line, and Associated Facilities in the Town of Darien, Walworth County, Wisconsin
Docket: 9835-CE-100
NOTICE OF HEARING
Public Hearing Session:
Thursday, July 16, 2026 - 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. CT
Darien Public Library 47 Park Street Darien, Wisconsin 53114
At the Public Hearing session, the Commission shall receive comments from the public. To comment at this session, a member of the public may either:
(1) Attend any physical location as noticed for this session; or
(2) Join Zoom at https://us02web.zoom.us/my/pschearings
If no adequate internet connection exists, join Zoom by telephone. Dial: +1 312 626 6799 Enter Meeting ID: 809 513 2930
What to Expect at a PSC Public Hearing. The public hearing provides an opportunity for the public to share their opinion on the proposed project in the form of a comment. It will not include any formal presentation or debate. To know what to expect at a PSC public hearing, visit: https://psc.wi.gov/Documents/WhattoExpectataPublicHearing.pdf
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Party Hearing Session:
Tuesday, July 21, 2026 - 10:00 a.m. CT
No Physical Location
At the Party Hearing Session, the Commission shall receive evidence from the parties and Commission staff. Parties and Commission staff shall either:
(1) Attend any physical location as noticed for this session; or
(2) Join Zoom at https://us02web.zoom.us/my/pschearings
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PSC REF#:592863 Public Service Commission of Wisconsin RECEIVED: 6/1/2026 8:05:02 AM
Docket 9835-CE-100
Written Public Comment:
As an alternative to commenting at the Public Hearing Session, a member of the public may submit a comment in writing received no later than Thursday, July 23, 2026, by either:
(1) The internet at: https://apps.psc.wi.gov/pages/publicCommentCase.htm?util=9835&case=CE&num=100, or
(2) U.S. Mail at: Docket 9835-CE-100 Comments
Public Service Commission P.O. Box 7854 Madison, WI 53707-7854
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Public Observation:
A member of the public may observe without participation any hearing session by:
1. Attending any physical location as noticed,
2. Watching on YouTube at:
https://www.youtube.com/@PSCWI-Hearings,
3. If no adequate internet connection exists, listening by telephone.
Dial: +1 312 626 6799 Enter Meeting ID: 809 513 2930
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More Information:
Documents and Schedule. To access the documents, the current schedule, and other information about this docket, go to the PSC Case Management System at: https://apps.psc.wi.gov/APPS/dockets/content/detail.aspx?id=9835&case=CE&num=100
Schedule Updates. To receive email updates to the schedule, subscribe to the docket calendar at: https://apps.psc.wi.gov/apps/Calendar/External/Subscribe
New Filings. To receive email notices of new filings in this docket go to ERF – EZ Subscriptions at: https://apps.psc.wi.gov/Pages/ERFhome.htm
Contact the Case Coordinator Kathleen Panak,
at (608) 267-1471 or Kathleen.Panak1@wisconsin.gov
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Docket 9835-CE-100
NOTICE IS GIVEN that the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin will hold a hearing in this docket as listed above. The presiding Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) may allot additional time to receive evidence and comments, if necessary.
This is a Class 1 proceeding as defined in Wis. Stat. § 227.01(3)(a).
FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT (FEIS).
The Commission issued the FEIS for this project on May 28,2026, on the Commission’s Electronic Records Filing System at the following location: https://apps.psc.wi.gov/pages/viewdoc.htm?docid=592366
Also, a bound copy of the FEIS may be obtained by contacting the EIS coordinator, Emily Thompson, at (608) 261-9408 or emily.thompson2@wisconsin.gov.
The FEIS will be one subject of the hearing.
PUBLIC COMMENTS.
A person may testify in this proceeding without becoming a party and without attorney representation. A person may submit this testimony in only one of the ways listed above for making a public comment. Only one comment may be submitted per person during the comment period indicated in this Notice.
A person shall limit a public comment to non-technical personal knowledge or personal opinion. A person may include references to other materials in a comment, but may not include, as part of a comment, any document not written or substantially modified by that person. The Commission shall only accept documents that a person offers to supplement a comment for the purpose of showing the basis of an opinion, not for proof of the matter asserted.
A person shall only make a public comment on their own behalf. The Commission shall receive no comment offered on behalf of another person except for a comment that: (1) demonstrates on its face that the commentor freely and knowingly agreed to another person offering the comment on their behalf and agreed to forgo the opportunity to offer their own comment, and (2) comes accompanied with a sworn statement by the person offering the comment that explains the process by which the comment was solicited, processed, and retained.
The ALJ will receive and submit to the decision maker as evidence, any comment that complies with the requirements described in this notice. Other comments will not be accepted as evidence. Parties may object to the receipt of a public comment.
PUBLIC RECORDS.
Any material submitted to the Commission is a public record and may appear on the Commission web site. For any hearing session livestreamed over YouTube, a recording will appear on the Commission’s YouTube channel.
AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT.
The Commission does not discriminate on the basis of disability in the provision of programs, services, or employment. Any person with a disability who needs accommodations to participate in this docket or who needs to obtain this document in a different format should contact the case coordinator listed above. Any hearing location is accessible to persons with a physical disability. Any hearing conducted with
Docket 9835-CE-100
Zoom, and any livestream conducted over YouTube, will provide:
(1) the image of the face of each person speaking, and
(2) closed captioning.
Michael E. Newmark
Administrative Law Judge
MEN:KP:jlt:DL:02133748
What is Being Proposed:
Foundry Ridge Energy Center, LLC, managed by Invenergy, is asking the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin for approval to build and operate a new natural gas-fired electric generation facility in the Town of Darien, Walworth County.
The proposed facility would include three natural gas-fired single-cycle combustion turbines capable of generating up to 324 megawatts of electricity, along with a 138 kV generator tie line and associated facilities. The project would connect to the North Creek Substation near the Darien Solar Substation. Project facilities may also include on-site wells, stormwater and wastewater management systems, electrical interconnection infrastructure, and a natural gas pipeline lateral.
The applicant has identified two possible sites: the proposed site near North Road and Creek Road, and an alternative site about two miles east on Creek Road. If approved, construction is anticipated to begin in September 2026, with an estimated completion date of March 2028.
This project is being reviewed under PSC Docket 9835-CE-100.
Why Residents Are Concerned:
Residents have raised concerns about whether a large fossil fuel power plant belongs in a rural community surrounded by homes, working farmland, a public elementary school, waterways, wildlife habitat, and existing energy infrastructure.
Key concerns include air quality, noise, greenhouse-gas and other emissions, public health, groundwater use, wastewater and stormwater management, construction impacts, rural road safety and deterioration, property values, and the long-term industrialization of agricultural land.
Many residents are also concerned about cumulative impacts. Foundry Ridge is not being proposed in isolation. It is emerging amid a much larger expansion of Wisconsin’s energy system, including gas plants, transmission lines, substations, pipelines, battery storage, large-scale generation projects, and other infrastructure intended to accommodate rapidly growing electricity demand—including demand associated with large-scale data center development.
EVA believes communities should not be asked to absorb project-by-project impacts without a full and transparent understanding of the larger picture: how much infrastructure is being proposed, what demand is driving it, who benefits, who carries the burden, and what the combined effects may be on rural communities, water, air, farmland, wildlife, public health, and long-term climate resilience.
For a fuller explanation of these concerns and the information residents are reviewing, read “Why Many Darien Residents Are Concerned About Foundry Ridge.”
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