Wisconsin governor issues executive order mandating carbon-free energy mix by 2050

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
The 300MW Badger Hollow Solar Farm is expected to spur Wisconsin’s renewable-energy sector. Image: Martin Abegglen / Flickr

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has signed off on Executive Order 38, a motion that will create an Office of Sustainability and Clean Energy within the state, with the office tasked with achieving the goal of ensuring all electricity consumed within the State of Wisconsin is 100% carbon-free by 2050.

Other missions of the Wisconsin Office of Sustainability and Clean Energy will include ensuring that the state fulfills the carbon reduction goals of the 2015 Paris Climate Accord, foster innovation, research, and business development within the renewable energy market and develop energy efficiency, sustainability and renewable energy standards for all new and existing state facilities, office buildings, and complexes.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

The office will also promote clean energy workforce training though a partnership with the University of Wisconsin System, Wisconsin Technical College System and other workforce programs.

In terms of developing a new clean energy plan for Wisconsin, the Office of Sustainability and Clean Energy will work in conjunction with the Department of Natural Resources, the Department of Transportation, the Public Service Commission, the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, other state agencies, Native Nations, local governments, utilities, businesses, and other stakeholders to develop and implement said plan. 

Per the release from the Office of the Governor, Evers' order comes from the fact that “climate change poses a serious threat to Wisconsin's natural resources, public health, communities, tourism, and economy.” 

The release adds that past research by the Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts revealed that by the middle of the century, statewide average annual temperatures are likely to warm by 6 to 7 degrees Fahrenheit.

Another report from the Union of Concerned Scientists suggests that under the current trajectory, by 2050 Wisconsin could see two weeks per year of dangerous heat – with heat indexes above 100 degrees – analogous to the current climate in states such as Alabama and South Carolina. 

While Wisconsin trails behind other US states when it comes to PV generation, more and more solar projects are on the horizon, headlined by the 300MW Badger Hollow Solar Farm, which is being developed by Chicago-based Invenergy. 

7 October 2025
San Francisco Bay Area, USA
PV Tech has been running an annual PV CellTech Conference since 2016. PV CellTech USA, on 7-8 October 2025 is our third PV CellTech conference dedicated to the U.S. manufacturing sector. The events in 2023 and 2024 were a sell out success and 2025 will once again gather the key stakeholders from PV manufacturing, equipment/materials, policy-making and strategy, capital equipment investment and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out PV manufacturing in the U.S. out to 2030 and beyond.
21 October 2025
New York, USA
Returning for its 12th edition, Solar and Storage Finance USA Summit remains the annual event where decision-makers at the forefront of solar and storage projects across the United States and capital converge. Featuring the most active solar and storage transactors, join us for a packed two-days of deal-making, learning and networking.
16 June 2026
Napa, USA
PV Tech has been running PV ModuleTech Conferences since 2017. PV ModuleTech USA, on 16-17 June 2026, will be our fifth PV ModulelTech conference dedicated to the U.S. utility scale solar sector. The event will gather the key stakeholders from solar developers, solar asset owners and investors, PV manufacturing, policy-making and and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out the PV module supply channels to the U.S. out to 2027 and beyond.

Read Next

Premium
July 15, 2025
Virtual power plants are emerging as a potentially critical means of meeting the growing power demands from data centres in the US.
July 15, 2025
D.E. Shaw Renewable Investments (DESRI) has started construction at a 150MW solar-plus-storage project in the US state of New Mexico.
July 15, 2025
The US Department of Commerce (DoC) has initiated an investigation into the imports of polysilicon and its derivatives.
July 14, 2025
Solar and storage developer MN8 Energy has raised US$575 million to refinance three PV projects in North Carolina, Kentucky and Illinois.
July 14, 2025
OpenSolar has launched a new model to help US rooftop solar installers reduce costs and thrive despite the loss of the 30% IRA tax credit.
July 14, 2025
Analyst Wood Mackenzie has forecast that solar PV and wind installations in the US will be 100GW lower than expected between 2025 and 2030 with the removal of Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) incentives.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Media Partners, Solar Media Events
September 2, 2025
Mexico City, Mexico
Solar Media Events
September 16, 2025
Athens, Greece
Solar Media Events
September 22, 2025
Bilbao, Spain
Solar Media Events
September 30, 2025
Seattle, USA
Solar Media Events
October 1, 2025
London, UK