Dairyland Power Explores Nuclear at La Crosse Site
Dairyland Power and Applied Atomics will assess small modular reactors totaling about 150 megawatts at the decommissioned Genoa reactor site.
Updated on Nov. 12, 2026 in Nuclear
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Dairyland Power Cooperative announced a partnership with New Orleans-based developer Applied Atomics to explore new nuclear power at the decommissioned La Crosse Boiling Water Reactor near Genoa. The partners will assess one or more small modular reactors totaling around 150 megawatts.
Why it matters
Dairyland Power said a potential plant could serve as a reliable, carbon-free alternative to fossil fuel-burning facilities. The effort comes as Wisconsin's electricity demand is projected to rise sharply, largely due to artificial intelligence data centers.
The proposed capacity of around 150 megawatts compares with the 50-megawatt La Crosse reactor that operated from 1969 to 1987. Wisconsin's electricity demand is projected to rise 40% by 2032, while the Midwest grid operator projects a 1-2% annual regional increase over 20 years; project costs and final reactor design remain unannounced.
The players
Dairyland Power Cooperative
Dairyland Power is a La Crosse-headquartered cooperative that provides wholesale electricity to 24 member cooperatives and 27 municipal utilities across the Upper Midwest.
Applied Atomics
Applied Atomics is a New Orleans-based nuclear developer focused on small modular reactor designs intended for factory assembly and shipment to sites.
Gov. Tony Evers
Tony Evers is the Governor of Wisconsin, who signed a nuclear study law earlier this year as the state weighs its energy future.
We Energies
We Energies is the electric utility of WEC Energy Group, which is pursuing new nuclear power at the decommissioned Kewaunee Power Station site.
The details
The site, located along the Mississippi River near the village of Genoa, still stores spent nuclear fuel and once housed a 345-megawatt coal plant that shuttered in 2021. The reactor design would allow a significant portion of the reactor to be assembled off site and then shipped for installation.
Timeline
1969 to 1987: The La Crosse reactor operated as Wisconsin's first nuclear power plant.
2021: A 345-megawatt coal plant at the Genoa site shuttered.
2025: Gov. Tony Evers signed a nuclear study law earlier this year.
End of 2027: Applied Atomics and Dairyland Power will decide whether to pursue a project.
Early 2030s: The site could begin commercial operation as early as 2032.
The Big Picture
The proposal returns to the Genoa site where Wisconsin's first nuclear plant ran from 1969 to 1987, now pairing that legacy with small modular reactors totaling around 150 megawatts. It also follows WEC Energy Group's separate plan to build new nuclear power at the decommissioned Kewaunee site, suggesting a statewide shift back toward nuclear.
If built, the plant would provide carbon-free power to Dairyland's member cooperatives and municipal utilities serving customers across Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, and Minnesota. Any future change to electricity prices would depend on project costs and the outcome of decisions still years away.
The takeaway
Wisconsin's rising power demand is pushing utilities to revisit nuclear energy, and decisions on projects like this one will shape the state's electricity supply well into the 2030s. Residents should watch for the 2027 decision point as an early signal of whether these plans move forward.
What happens next
Applied Atomics and Dairyland Power will decide whether to pursue a project by the end of 2027, and the site could begin commercial operation as early as 2032.
Further reading
For more background on how the state is weighing its options, explore Nuclear coverage across Wisconsin.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter.
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