INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission will rehear AES Indiana’s roughly $71 million electric rate case, voting 3-1 on Sept. 2 to reopen a June order that already started lifting bills for more than half a million Central Indiana customers.
The Times of Northwest Indiana reported consumer advocates pushed the reopen after a Google data center was proposed in Monrovia and a BlackRock-led consortium moved to acquire AES Indiana’s parent. Gov. Mike Braun demoted, then fired, the IURC board chair after the original hike, citing affordability.
The fight is statewide — affordability versus reliability and investment — at the same commission Region readers watch on NIPSCO cases.
Key facts
| Item | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Utility | AES Indiana (~530,000–533,000 customers) | Times / WFYI / AES |
| Original order | June 17, 2026 (~$71 million) | IURC / Times |
| Rehearing vote | 3-1 on Sept. 2, 2026 | WFYI / IPM |
| Granted | OUCC five-pillar reconsideration; CAC rehearing on Monrovia + BlackRock | IURC / IPM |
| Denied | AES motion to delay | IURC / IPM |
| Next | Prehearing 2:30 p.m. Sept. 17, PNC Center, Indianapolis | WFYI / IURC |
| Chair | Anthony Swinger abstained (prior OUCC work on AES) | WFYI / IPM |
How it reopened
WFYI reported the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor petitioned in early July, arguing the June decision did not fully weigh affordability. Citizens Action Coalition sought rehearing tied to the data-center load and the pending ownership change.
The Sept. 2 order in Cause No. 46258 grants the OUCC’s ask to reweigh the General Assembly’s five pillars — reliability, affordability, resiliency, stability, and environmental sustainability — and grants CAC’s ask for new evidence on Google Monrovia and the BlackRock acquisition. AES Indiana’s delay motion was denied.
Indiana Public Media / Indiana Capital Chronicle reported Braun appointees Joshua Bain and Joby Jerrells joined Commissioner Bob Deig in the majority. Bain replaced Andy Zay, whom Braun fired; Jerrells replaced David Veleta, who resigned after backing the June hike. Commissioner David Ziegner dissented; Swinger stayed out.
What each side says
“We are pleased that the Commission recognized that these developments warrant a very close look,” CAC Program Director Ben Inskeep told The Times. “The Commission should not lock Indiana ratepayers into long-term rates based on an outdated picture of AES Indiana’s customers, investment needs and financial circumstances.”
AES Indiana said in a Times-carried statement that it received the order, respects the process, and remains “committed to being open, transparent and responsive throughout these proceedings.” It still believes the original case’s merits are strong and said its focus remains on more than 530,000 Central Indiana customers.
WFYI quoted Jerrells saying the commission cannot approve or deny the merger itself, but the deal could affect AES operations the panel regulates — so relevant evidence should come in. Ziegner’s dissent, per IPM, argued the pillars were already weighed, Monrovia will not change June base rates, and BlackRock sits outside this cost-of-service task.
Why NWI still cares
Local NIPSCO fights are separate stories. This rehearing is the other shoe: a reconstituted IURC putting affordability and big-load risk back on the table. That sets tone for dockets ahead.
Sept. 17 is the first checkpoint. The order does not reverse the June increase by itself. Watch whether the panel trims the hike, slows the phase-in, or largely keeps the prior result.
Photo credit
¹ Region N3 file / illustrative utility art. Photo: WFYI — Image from WFYI coverage of AES Indiana’s rate rehearing at the IURC.