Underground Energy in Illinois and Wisconsin: Who Buys Tunneling and Pipeline Work and How to Get In
Gas mains, electric duct banks, deep rock tunnels and transmission lines are bought by a short list of utilities, a regional sewer agency, the City of Chicago and, behind them all, two state regulators. Each one publishes work a different way. This page shows who buys what, where each posts solicitations, how to register, which regulator cases decide the money, and what is dated right now. Facts are as of October 16, 2026, with a source link for each.
I’m Gridline. Underground work follows the money, and the money follows the regulators. So here is the route: who buys, how they post, how to register, and which cases to watch.
1The short version
In plain words: The work is a mix of closed alliances and open bids. Peoples Gas is moving its main replacement to a few long-term alliance contractors chosen through a closed process. The Chicago sewer district and the City post true public bids. ComEd, Ameren and the Wisconsin utilities buy through supplier databases and invite firms to bid. Regulators decide how much each utility is allowed to spend, so their dockets come first.
Sources: Peoples Gas forum slides, ICC safety monitor Q2 2026, WEC investor presentations, ComEd capital proposal, MWRD TARP, City solicitation record.
2Who buys what
Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas (WEC Energy Group)
The ICC directed Peoples Gas to retire 1,020 miles of cast and ductile iron main under 36 inches in diameter by Jan. 1, 2035. The Pipe Retirement Program replaced the earlier modernization program. Peoples Gas’s June 3, 2026 public forum slides call 2026 a ramp-up year, with 25 to 69 miles of new main and 14 to 21 miles retired, and a 2027 plan of 105 miles installed and 53 miles retired. New main has to go in before old main can be retired.
The company is moving toward a small number of “strategic alliance” contractors through a closed RFI and RFP, with mobilization planned for Jan. 1, 2027. The ICC’s independent safety monitor wrote in its July 22, 2026 draft report that the selection was still under way and limited to union contractors.
Forum slides ↗ · ICC safety monitor, Q2 2026 ↗ · 2025 Supplier Diversity Report ↗
Nicor Gas (Southern Company Gas)
Nicor serves 2.3 million customers in northern Illinois (outside the City of Chicago). On Nov. 19, 2025 the ICC cut $146.5 million from Nicor’s $314.3 million rate request, about 47%, and approved about $167.8 million. On Oct. 15, 2026 the ICC approved a separately negotiated settlement that cut a later $221 million request to about $82 million (roughly 63%), with a 9.48% return on equity and a lower monthly fixed charge of $15. The utility said the original ask covered infrastructure work including about 45 miles of distribution pipeline replacement and repairs on more than 400 miles of transmission pipeline. Sources disagree on when the average residential increase starts: the Chicago Tribune reported about $2.21 per month beginning in January, while Capitol News Illinois / CBS Chicago reported about $2 per month beginning in November.
Nicor does not publish a list of open solicitations. Its Supplier Inclusion page routes suppliers to Southern Company Gas Purchasing, which runs competitive bids and RFPs.
Chicago Tribune, Oct. 15, 2026 ↗ · CBS Chicago / Capitol News Illinois ↗ · ICC press release (2025 order) ↗ · Nicor Supplier Inclusion ↗
ComEd (Exelon)
ComEd reported 32,065 miles of underground circuit in its March 2025 capital proposal. Its 2028 to 2031 grid plan is before the ICC in docket 26-0047, and ComEd says the ICC will rule by the end of 2026. The Citizens Utility Board, a party to the case, describes the plan as about $15.3 billion ($9.5 billion capital, $5.7 billion operating).
Exelon’s own supplier categories name underground electric construction: horizontal directional drilling and cable replacement, duct bank and conduit, vaults and manholes.
ComEd capital proposal ↗ · ComEd filing release ↗ · CUB ↗ · Exelon supplier page ↗
Ameren Illinois
Ameren Illinois filed its second multi-year grid plan, covering 2028 to 2031, with the ICC on Jan. 20, 2026. Ameren says it expects an ICC final order in December 2026 and that a separate rate filing follows in January 2027. The ICC approved its first plan (2024 to 2027) on Dec. 19, 2024.
We Energies, Wisconsin Gas and Wisconsin Public Service (WEC Energy Group)
WEC’s capital plan for 2026 to 2030 is $37.5 billion. In April 2026 rate filings, We Energies proposed 60 to 80 miles of new underground cable in each of 2027 and 2028, and Wisconsin Public Service proposed 80 to 100 miles in each year. These are proposals, not approvals. The Wisconsin PSC cases are 5-UR-112 (Wisconsin Electric and Wisconsin Gas, doing business as We Energies) and 6690-UR-129 (Wisconsin Public Service). WEC expects decisions in Q4 2026 and new rates on Jan. 1, 2027.
WEC investor presentations ↗ · We Energies filing release ↗ · WPS filing release ↗ · PSC press release ↗
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD)
TARP, the Deep Tunnel, has four tunnel systems totaling 110 miles: Mainstream, Calumet, Des Plaines and Upper Des Plaines. Phase I was finished in 2006. The McCook Reservoir Stage 2 is under construction and MWRD expects it online in 2032. MWRD also buys sewer rehabilitation, dropshaft, pipeline and tunnel rehabilitation work. Open bids are posted on its Contract Announcements page.
MWRD’s 2026 planning booklet lists upcoming items such as Calumet and Upper Des Plaines dropshaft rehabilitation, solids and sludge pipeline work, and West Side Intercepting Sewer No. 2 rehabilitation. Those are MWRD’s own estimates, not bid dates; nothing counts until it is posted.
TARP ↗ · TARP status, June 30, 2026 ↗ · Contract Announcements ↗
City of Chicago Department of Water Management (DWM)
DWM bids tunnel, sewer, water main and lead service line work through the City’s eProcurement system. Posted now: the Southwest Pumping Station Tunnel Connection (Spec. 1337517, due Nov. 17, 2026) and seven block-level lead service line replacement bids with due dates from Nov. 25 to Dec. 16, 2026. The final-design qualifications request for the Far Southside Overflow Tunnel closed June 10, 2026.
Spec. 1337517 record ↗ · City solicitation search ↗ · Spec. 1301900 record ↗
Smaller and regional buyers
MidAmerican Energy serves the Quad Cities area, Alliant Energy (Wisconsin Power and Light) and Madison Gas and Electric serve parts of Wisconsin, and American Transmission Co. owns transmission in Wisconsin. The Chicago Public Building Commission mostly buys buildings, alleys and streets, and had no open bids on Oct. 15, 2026. Northern Illinois municipal electric and gas systems buy on their own, usually through local bid pages. Registration paths for the first four and the PBC are in the next section.
3How each one publishes work and how to register
In plain words: For most utilities, registering gets you into a database and nothing more. Work comes by invitation, so profiles need the right categories and a safety record. For MWRD and the City, solicitations are public and open to any registered bidder.
4Where the money is approved: ICC and PSC cases to watch
Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas rate case (docket 26-0065)
WEC says Peoples Gas cut its request by $58 million to $144 million in July and expects new rates on Jan. 1, 2027. ICC administrative law judges have issued a proposed order recommending $66.2 million, which is 54% below the revised request, according to a Citizens Utility Board release dated Oct. 7, 2026. CUB says the Commission is slated to rule in November. The rate case decides how much main-replacement spending flows into rates.
ComEd and Ameren Illinois grid plans (dockets 26-0047 and 26-0051)
Both plans cover 2028 to 2031. ComEd says the ICC will decide by the end of 2026. Ameren says it expects a December 2026 final order. Each utility then files a separate rate case in January 2027. Grid plans set the program for underground cable, duct bank and substation work; rate cases set the money.
We Energies and Wisconsin Public Service rate cases (5-UR-112 and 6690-UR-129)
Both were filed April 1, 2026, according to WEC. The PSC held public hearings on Sept. 1 (We Energies, Milwaukee) and Sept. 29 (Wisconsin Public Service, Green Bay). WEC expects orders in Q4 2026 and new rates on Jan. 1, 2027. No PSC meeting date for the decisions was found on official pages.
Safety monitor for the Peoples Gas pipe retirement program
The ICC has an independent safety monitor for the program that files a quarterly summary. These reports are the best public view of contractor selection, productivity and schedule risk. The Q2 2026 draft is dated July 22, 2026.
A note on sources: The ICC’s docket pages sit behind a verification check, so this page links to documents filed in the dockets, ICC press releases, utility statements and the Citizens Utility Board. Open the docket itself for the current schedule before relying on a date.
5Chicago: permit coordination for underground work
Underground coordination comes before the permit
In Chicago, work in the public way that involves excavation needs review by the CDOT Office of Underground Coordination (OUC) before an opening permit can be issued. The request is an Existing Facility Protection (EFP) review, filed online in the ProjectDox system with drawings sealed by an Illinois Professional Engineer. OUC members, the utilities with facilities in the street, have 30 calendar days to answer. A project is not authorized until every conflict is resolved.
- Excavation or penetration 12 feet or deeper: call CDOT’s Division of Infrastructure Management before you submit to OUC.
- An EFP is active for one year, or six months in the area bounded by North Avenue, Halsted Street, Cermak Road and Lake Michigan.
- OUC approval does not replace an 811 Chicago dig ticket.
6Transmission: MISO and PJM
Competitive 765 kV and 345 kV projects
MISO named selected developers for projects in its Long Range Transmission Planning Tranche 2.1. On Jan. 6, 2026 it chose Viridon for the Wisconsin Southeast 345 kV project and Transource for the Bell Center to Columbia to Sugar Creek 765 kV line to the Illinois/Wisconsin state line. On May 15, 2026 it chose a partnership of Ameren Transmission Co. of Illinois, GridLiance Heartland, Dairyland Power and the Illinois Municipal Electric Agency for two Illinois 765 kV projects totaling more than 250 miles. Construction follows regulatory approvals. These are mostly overhead lines; the underground work is crossings, substations and civil work that developers subcontract later.
ComEd territory is in PJM
ComEd’s transmission sits in PJM. On Feb. 12, 2026 the PJM Board approved the 2025 RTEP Window 1 package, about $11.8 billion overall, which includes extra-high-voltage lines and the first underground HVDC line within the PJM footprint. The release does not say where that line is.
7What is open and what is coming
I only put a calendar date on a card when an official page gives it. Expected decisions are tagged Forecast and use the agency’s or utility’s own wording. Check the source and any addenda before you rely on a date.
Watch list last checked: October 16, 2026
Pre-bid and question deadline: Southwest Pumping Station Tunnel Connection (Spec. 1337517)
The City record lists a pre-bid at the Jardine Water Purification Plant, 1000 E. Ohio St., on Oct. 22, 2026 (the time field reads 11:20 a.m.) and a questions deadline of 2:00 p.m. that day. Confirm the time in the solicitation documents.
Source: City of Chicago solicitation record ↗Rehabilitation of Local Sewers (Contract 23-890-1S)
Cleaning and cured-in-place lining of about 10,000 linear feet of 8-inch to 18-inch sanitary sewers in Country Club Hills, Harvey, Markham, Bellwood, Dolton, Ford Heights, Hazel Crest, Riverdale and Stone Park. Estimated cost $2,706,674.41. Bids are due by 11:00 a.m. CT on Euna only. The voluntary pre-bid was held Oct. 2. Questions are accepted online until one week before opening.
Source: MWRD bid details ↗ICC regular open meeting (Chicago, 11:30 a.m.)
The Commission can vote on rate and grid-plan orders at any open meeting. Agendas are posted on the ICC site. No utility order is confirmed for this date.
Source: ICC meeting list ↗ICC regular open meeting (Springfield, 11:30 a.m.)
The Commission can vote on rate and grid-plan orders at any open meeting. Agendas are posted on the ICC site. No utility order is confirmed for this date.
Source: ICC meeting list ↗Southwest Pumping Station Tunnel Connection (Spec. 1337517)
Department of Water Management construction bid, advertised Sept. 24, 2026. Electronic bids are due by 11:00 a.m. through the City's eProcurement system. Registration is required.
Source: City of Chicago solicitation record ↗ICC regular open meeting (Chicago, 11:30 a.m.)
The Commission can vote on rate and grid-plan orders at any open meeting. Agendas are posted on the ICC site. No utility order is confirmed for this date.
Source: ICC meeting list ↗ICC special open meeting (Chicago, 11:30 a.m.)
The Commission can vote on rate and grid-plan orders at any open meeting. Agendas are posted on the ICC site. No utility order is confirmed for this date.
Source: ICC meeting list ↗Block-level lead service line replacement, Census Tracts 8 to 14 (7 bids)
Large Construction bids for water service line replacement, funded through the IEPA state revolving fund. Due dates: Nov. 25 (tracts 8 and 9); Dec. 2 (tracts 10 and 11); Dec. 9 (tracts 12 and 13); Dec. 16 (tract 14).
Source: City of Chicago solicitation search ↗Peoples Gas rate case: ICC ruling expected (docket 26-0065)
Administrative law judges have recommended $66.2 million against a revised $144 million request. The Citizens Utility Board says the ICC is slated to rule in November. This is an expectation, not a scheduled vote date.
Source: Citizens Utility Board release, Oct. 7, 2026 ↗Ameren Illinois grid plan 2028 to 2031: ICC final order expected
Ameren says it expects an ICC final order in December 2026. The plan, if approved, takes effect in January 2028, and a separate rate filing follows in January 2027.
Source: Ameren Illinois ↗ComEd grid plan 2028 to 2031: ICC decision expected by year end (docket 26-0047)
ComEd's filing release says the ICC will rule by the end of 2026, after an 11-month review. A separate ComEd rate filing is planned for January 2027.
Source: ComEd filing release, Jan. 2026 ↗We Energies and Wisconsin Public Service rate cases: PSC decisions expected (5-UR-112 and 6690-UR-129)
WEC's September 2026 investor presentation shows orders expected in Q4 2026, for new rates effective Jan. 1, 2027. The PSC held its public hearings Sept. 1 and Sept. 29. No PSC decision meeting date was found.
Source: PSC press release, Aug. 25, 2026 ↗Peoples Gas pipe retirement alliance contractors: planned mobilization
The ICC safety monitor's schedule table lists contractor mobilization on Jan. 1, 2027. Its July 22, 2026 draft report says selection was still under way and limited to union contractors. Earlier dates in that schedule have already slipped, so treat this as a plan.
Source: ICC safety monitor Q1 and Q2 2026 reports ↗Quiet lanes: no dated solicitation posted
Peoples Gas pipe retirement forum: second 2026 session not yet announced
The June 3, 2026 slides said the next biannual forum would be in late Q3, date to be determined, held online. No date was posted on the program page when checked on Oct. 15, 2026.
Source: Peoples Gas forum slides ↗Peoples Gas planned RFPs: quarters only, no dates
Peoples Gas's own 2025 supplier diversity report lists tentative RFPs for PE pipe and steel materials (Q2 to Q3 2026), damage prevention and locating (Q3 2026) and hard and soft restoration (Q3 or Q4 2026, or Q1 2027 at the latest). No posting dates are public.
Source: 2025 Supplier Diversity Annual Report ↗Nicor Gas: no public solicitation list
On Oct. 15, 2026 the ICC approved an ~$82 million rate increase under a settlement that cut Nicor's ~$221 million request by about 63% (Chicago Tribune; Capitol News Illinois / CBS Chicago). Nicor's Supplier Inclusion page still directs suppliers to Southern Company Gas Purchasing and lists an email contact. No open solicitations are published.
Source: Chicago Tribune, Oct. 15, 2026 ↗MWRD planned lettings: estimates only
MWRD's 2026 Major Contracts booklet (version dated Nov. 6, 2025) lists pipeline, dropshaft, tunnel and sewer rehabilitation items with estimated advertising months. They are MWRD's estimates; each real bid appears on Contract Announcements with its own dates.
Source: MWRD procurement and materials management ↗Public Building Commission: no open opportunity
PBC's current opportunities page showed every listed item as past on Oct. 15, 2026. Sign up for PBC Alerts for new notices.
Source: PBC current opportunities ↗Transmission: developers have been selected, no supplier bids yet
MISO and PJM have chosen developers and approved projects. Construction follows regulatory approvals. Subcontract work will come through the developers' own supplier channels, such as ATC's supplier form.
Source: MISO selections ↗Wisconsin and Illinois utilities: invitation only
WEC, Exelon, Ameren, MidAmerican and Alliant invite registered suppliers to bid. They do not publish open solicitation lists.
Source: WEC suppliers page ↗Recently closed
- Oct 15 · Regulator · ICC approved ~$82M Nicor Gas rate settlement (cut from ~$221M) (closed). Source ↗
Official portals are the record, and dates can move by addendum. This list is a convenience, not a substitute for the solicitation documents.
8How to get in
I’m Undertow. Deep work gets won early, with the right registrations and the right team. Here are the six stops, in order.
Pick your lane
Decide whether you want to sell as a prime, as a subcontractor to a prime or alliance contractor, or as a specialist (trenchless lining, boring, shaft work, locating, restoration).
Register where each buyer looks
WEC PowerAdvocate, Exelon GEP, Ameren Supplier Enablement, MidAmerican Oracle, Alliant PowerAdvocate, the MWRD three registrations, and City eProcurement. Fill in categories carefully; invitations follow them.
Get safety and diversity paperwork ready
Several utilities use ISNetworld or similar prequalification, and each runs its own diverse-supplier program. MWRD bids carry affirmative action and labor agreement requirements.
Watch the regulators first
Rate cases and grid plans decide the budget. A cut in a final order changes what gets built and when.
Show up before the solicitation
Pre-bid and technical conferences are where scope questions are answered in public. MWRD and the City post them with the solicitation.
Read the solicitation closely and answer on time
Use the official portal, submit questions by the stated deadline, and file before the stated time. Late and emailed bids are routinely rejected.
9Sources
- Peoples Gas: PRP biannual forum slides, June 3, 2026
- ICC independent safety monitor: Q2 2026 quarterly summary (draft, July 22, 2026)
- ICC independent safety monitor: Q1 2026 quarterly summary (May 7, 2026)
- Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas: 2025 Supplier Diversity Annual Report (ICC filing)
- WEC Energy Group: investor presentations (parent of Peoples Gas, We Energies, Wisconsin Gas, WPS)
- WEC Energy Group: supplier registration (PowerAdvocate)
- Citizens Utility Board: Peoples Gas proposed order release (Oct. 7, 2026)
- Citizens Utility Board: ComEd grid plan testimony (June 29, 2026)
- ICC press release: Nicor Gas rate order, docket 25-0055 (Nov. 19, 2025)
- Nicor Gas: Supplier Inclusion
- Southern Company: suppliers
- ComEd: Capital Investments Proposal (March 2025)
- ComEd: four-year grid plan filing release (Jan. 2026)
- ICC docket 26-0047 filing: ComEd grid plan petition
- Exelon: how to become a supplier
- Ameren Illinois: Integrated Grid Plan
- ICC docket 26-0051 filing: Ameren Illinois grid plan petition
- Ameren: Supplier Enablement
- MidAmerican Energy: become a vendor
- Alliant Energy: information for suppliers
- Madison Gas and Electric: supplier resources
- American Transmission Co.: prospective supplier form
- Wisconsin PSC: press release on pending rate cases (Aug. 25, 2026)
- Wisconsin Public Service: April 2026 rate filing release
- We Energies: April 2026 rate filing release
- Illinois Commerce Commission: 2026 open meeting calendar
- MWRD: Tunnel and Reservoir Plan (TARP)
- MWRD: TARP status report as of June 30, 2026
- MWRD: the three vendor registrations
- MWRD: Contract Announcements
- MWRD: Contract 23-890-1S bid details
- City of Chicago: eProcurement (supplier registration)
- City of Chicago: current bid opportunities
- City of Chicago: solicitation search
- City of Chicago: Spec. 1337517, Southwest Pumping Station Tunnel Connection
- City of Chicago: Spec. 1301900, Far Southside Overflow Tunnel final design RFQ
- CDOT Office of Underground Coordination: Existing Facility Protection process
- Public Building Commission of Chicago: current opportunities
- MISO: selected developers, Wisconsin projects (Jan. 6, 2026)
- MISO: selected developers, Illinois projects (May 15, 2026)
- PJM: Board approves 2025 RTEP Window 1 (Feb. 13, 2026)
This page summarizes public filings, official pages and public postings as of October 15, 2026. It is not an official publication and not legal or engineering advice. Programs, dockets and solicitation dates change; confirm each item at the linked source before acting on it.
About
Meet Michael E. Brown
President and Managing Partner, GOTB Consulting, LLC · Chicago
Michael E. Brown has 20+ years of governmental and municipal consulting and lobbying experience. He was lead contract negotiator on the $8.5B O’Hare 21 program and the $800M O’Hare rail extension, and lead lobbyist and contract negotiator on the $400M Chicago Department of Water Management lateral redevelopment. (Dollar figures are program sizes, not GOTB fees.)
He has worked with the Illinois legislature and public officials on public-private partnership (P3) policy, and has consulted to the Cook County Commission on reducing duplicative administrative offices. He is a frequent speaker at governmental and municipal functions, focuses on good government and healthier social and economic solutions for safe, successful neighborhoods, lives in Chicago, and serves on the Board of the March of Dimes.
- M.S., Psychology (1997), University of Iowa
- B.S., Psychology (1995), University of Iowa
About
Meet Richard Butler
Partner, GOTB Consulting, LLC · Chicago
Richard (Rich) Butler is a partner at GOTB Consulting and a 38-year veteran of Chicago city government. From August 2019 to February 2020 he served as First Deputy Commissioner and Chief Administrative Officer of the Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA), responsible for day-to-day administration and operations of O’Hare and Midway, including finance, contracts, operations, legal, human resources, workforce development, concessions, real estate and vehicle services. CDA manages the two airports with a federally funded budget of $8.5 billion. (Dollar figures are budget and program sizes, not GOTB fees.)
Before that, Rich was First Deputy Procurement Officer at the City’s Department of Procurement Services and Chief Administrative Officer of the Chicago Park District, where he oversaw procurement, audit, finance, warehousing and general administrative services on an estimated annual budget of $385 million and established district-wide policies and procedures. His City career began at the Department of Aviation as Director of Contracts Administration, and he also served as General Superintendent of the Department of Streets and Sanitation.
He completed the Chicago Accounting and Purchasing System Training Program and the City of Chicago Executive Management Program, was a key team member on the design and implementation plan for the City’s new eProcurement system, and is a member of the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing and the Purchasing Management Association of Chicago. He has served on the board of the Chicago Municipal Employees Credit Union and on the US Communities board, representing the City of Chicago, and traveled to South Korea to represent Chicago in the Kotra Alliance to bridge contracting opportunities. A native of Englewood, he attended De La Salle High School.
- B.S., Northern Illinois University
Fictional characters from GOTB’s original stories. Real-world facts always link to public sources.