DTE needs new, $300 million substation to support the data center proposed for Saline Township
On November 6, 2025 the office of Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed a “notice of intervention” with the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) in response to DTE’s earlier request to MPSC to fast track approval of its contracts for service to the data center under development in Saline Township.
According to a press release Nessel, “urges the MPSC to treat the requests as a contested case and conduct public hearings on the matter, citing significant unknown details surrounding the project and the potential financial risks to utility ratepayers across DTE’s service territory. A formal public hearing with discovery and filed testimony will allow parties, such as the Attorney General, the opportunity to verify protections and cost reductions to customers proposed by the utility corporation and provide the Commission with a full evidentiary record to decide whether the special contract is prudent and reasonable.
The MPSC is the regulatory agency in Michigan that oversees the electrical and telecomm utilities, and is responsible for approving new service contracts for utility providers. The Attorney General’s office has statutory authority over the commission’s work.
According to the AG’s filing, DTE submitted an application to MPSC on October 31, asking for “ex parte” approval of these contracts. “Ex parte” is a legal term that means DTE is asking the commission to approve its applications without input from anyone except DTE and MPSC agency staff.
In short, DTE wants the commission to approve their service contracts without public hearings or input. The Attorney General’s filing is a formal request to the MPSC to deny an ‘ex parte’ approval and instead hold public hearings before issuing a decision.
While ‘ex parte’ approvals are a legal option the commission has, it is intended to be granted in cases where the decision won’t have any negative effect on other utility customers. Specifically, only for cases where it is estimated the project will cause no rate increases or load/service issues to other customers in the service area.
Nessel’s filing states DTE’s application does not qualify for ‘ex parte relief’ for multiple reasons, including that DTE has not provided adequate analysis and evidence that the project won’t cause a rate increase for other customers in the future.
The filing reads, “The Attorney General takes the position that the Company’s application does not qualify for ex parte relief under MCL 460.6a(3), which states that: “[a]n alteration or amendment in rates or rate schedules applied for by a public utility that will not result in an increase in the cost of service to its customers may be authorized and approved without notice or hearing.”
The filing references evidence provided by DTE in its application showing that DTE will need to construct a new, $300 million substation to support service to the data center and that some amount of that cost will be recovered through a future rate increase request.
It reads, “Company witness Foley further testifies that “approximately $300 million of capital investment will be needed to construct” a substation to serve the Customer. [16] While witness Foley states that “the Customer’s landlord has agreed to pay a $40 million non-refundable construction advance to help offset the costs of the new industrial substation,” [17] he goes on to testify that “[t]he Company will propose adding the net cost… to its rate base for recovery in a future rate case.”
Nessel’s filing came on the same day MPSC approved a request by Consumers Energy to change the rules under which it serves data centers and other large-energy customers in its service area. Details about MPSC’s new terms for Consumers Energy can be found on their website.
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