Microsoft has once again paused work on a 900-acre section of its Mount Pleasant data center campus in Wisconsin, though the first phase of construction remains on schedule. A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed that the initial phase of the project, slated for completion in 2026, remains “fully on track.” However, preliminary work on land designated for future phases has faced intermittent disruptions.
In January, work on the expansion site was initially paused, then restarted, and is now paused again. The company has not commented on the reason for the repeated pauses.
“The most important thing for people in Wisconsin to know is that we’re fully on track with construction on our datacenter in Mt. Pleasant, it’s still expected to go online in 2026, and our $3.3 billion commitment remains intact,” the Microsoft spokesperson said via email. “We have expansion sites in Mount Pleasant where we intend to build additional infrastructure, and we’ve already done preliminary work for those future builds.”
When the pause was first announced earlier this year, Microsoft representatives said the company was reevaluating its plans.
“We have paused early construction work for this second phase while we evaluate scope and recent changes in technology and consider how this might impact the design of our facilities,” the spokesperson explained in an email at the time.
The ongoing first phase of the data center project is located near the intersection of 90th Street and State Highway 195 in Mount Pleasant. The additional 900 acres earmarked for expansion lie just west of the main site and extending northwest along Durand Avenue.
Sean Ryan, the village Communications Director, stated that Microsoft is upholding its agreement with the Village of Mount Pleasant. The first phase of the project will fulfill the $3.3 billion investment promise made by Microsoft before the end of 2026. Ryan noted that the increased property value generated by this initial phase “is expected to surpass the amount Microsoft committed to in its agreement with the Village.” The taxes levied on this property value will fully compensate the village and Racine County for their infrastructure investments related to the project, Ryan elaborated.
A 2023 agreement between Microsoft, the village, and Racine County granted Microsoft until July 2030 to commence work on the project’s second phase.
A February report from investment bank TD Cowen suggests Microsoft might be scaling back its data center expansion efforts nationally. The report indicates that Microsoft has terminated at least two leases with third-party data center operators and withdrawn from several large data center projects during early-stage negotiations. The report suggests Microsoft may be “in an oversupply position” of data centers relative to its revised projections of future demand.
