Company: WELPM
Filing Date: 2025-10-31
Form Type: 10-Q
Source: 0000107815-25-000207
Chunk: 133

Company: WISCONSIN ELECTRIC POWER CO
Filing Date: 2025-10-31
Form: 10-Q
Item: Part I, Item 8
Chunk 133
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 surrounding the market for RTCs, and WEC Energy Group's desire to focus on long-term GHG emissions-reduction across the enterprise, in the third quarter of 2025, WEC Energy Group made a decision to reassess its previous, standalone goal related to methane emissions from natural gas distribution. Water QualityClean Water Act Cooling Water Intake Structure RuleRevisions to an EPA rule authorized under Section 316(b) of the CWA became effective in October 2014 and requires the location, design, construction, and capacity of cooling water intake structures at existing power plants reflect the BTA for minimizing adverse environmental impacts. The rule applies to all of our existing generating facilities with cooling water intake structures, except for the ERGS units, which were permitted and received a final BTA determination under the rules governing new facilities. Effective in June 2020, the requirements of Section 316(b) were incorporated into the Wisconsin Administrative Code. The WDNR applies this rule when establishing BTA requirements for cooling water intake structures at existing facilities. These BTA requirements are incorporated into WPDES permits for our facilities. We have received interim BTA determinations for all generation facilities where Section 316(b) is applicable. With respect to OCPP Units 7 and 8, we believe that in accordance with the requirements in the CWA, the WDNR will determine that existing technology (wet cooling towers) installed at the units represents BTA for minimizing adverse environmental impacts when the WPDES permit for those units is reissued, which is expected in 2026.Steam Electric Effluent Limitation GuidelinesThe EPA's 2015 final ELG rule, which took effect in January 2016 (2015 ELG rule), was modified in 2020 (2020 ELG rule), and again in May 2024 with the publication of the Supplemental ELG Rule. These rules establish federal technology-based requirements for several types of power plant wastewaters. The three requirements that affect us relate to wastewater discharge limits for BATW, FGD wastewater, and CRL (landfill leachate). Although our coal-fueled facilities were constructed with advanced wastewater treatment technologies that meet many of the discharge limits established by the 2015 rule, facility modifications were still necessary at OCPP and ERGS to meet all of the 2015 ELG requirements and the additional ones established by the 2020 ELG rule. Compliance costs associated with the 2015 and 2020 ELG rules required $97 million in capital investment