The IURC approved a $71 million AES Indiana base rate increase — and it stacks directly on top of a $9.52-per-month fuel adjustment charge already running through August 2026. For manufacturers in AES territory, that is two simultaneous cost increases hitting the same billing cycle this July. Meanwhile, all five Indiana investor-owned utilities are raising rates at the same time, and the regulatory body managing that repricing is operating without a seated chair on its most consequential active dockets.

Five developments today.

AES Indiana Rate Increase: The Double Hit

The IURC voted 3-1 to approve a $71 million annual base rate increase for AES Indiana, with phased increases beginning this July and again in January 2027. The residential headline is roughly $5 per month — but it sits on top of a $9.52-per-month fuel adjustment charge already running through August 2026. Combined residential exposure: approximately $14.52 per month. Industrial accounts see this flow through demand charges and the fuel adjustment rider at an entirely different scale. Do not scale from the residential number. Model your own facility's exposure.

Governor Braun replaced IURC Chair Andy Zay following the vote and installed Anthony Swinger. Swinger is currently recused from approximately 20 active dockets — including any AES rehearing — due to prior work at the Office of Utility Consumer Counselor. The OUCC's rehearing petition is due July 7. That is the next window in which the approved rate structure can change.

The 2030 base rate freeze does not cover fuel adjustment charges or TDSIC infrastructure cost-recovery filings — both are explicitly excluded. AES's next TDSIC filing is deferred to 2028, not frozen. A second cost wave is already queued.

Indiana's Statewide Rate Pattern and the Data Center Cost Shift

The AES increase is not isolated. All five Indiana investor-owned utilities are raising rates simultaneously. NIPSCO residential customers absorbed a 26.7% increase in the past year on top of a prior 17.8% hike. Duke Energy Indiana secured roughly $295.7 million in annual revenue increases. CenterPoint bills surged 25%.

The structural driver is the same across all five: data center load is being absorbed through the existing rate structure rather than through dedicated large-load rate classes. Ohio and Virginia are advancing requirements that data centers fund their own grid infrastructure. Indiana has not taken that step.

NIPSCO reached a settlement with Amazon to build dedicated generation capacity funded by Amazon — projecting nearly $1 billion in ratepayer savings over 15 years (the utility's own estimate, not independently verified by OUCC). AES has no equivalent arrangement for the Metrobloks and Sabey data center proposals in its territory. The IURC's expected September 2026 order on the AES–Google Monrovia contract will set the Indiana template on whether data centers fund their own infrastructure or continue spreading those costs across every ratepayer on the system.

Valgotech Noblesville Opens Defense Battery Facility

A Noblesville company called Valgotech opened a lithium-sulfur battery production facility in April and waited two months to announce it. Backers include the NSF, U.S. Air Force, Space Force, and Army. The NSF awarded a $1 million STTR Phase II grant with Purdue's battery research group as the academic partner. The drone battery market is projected to grow from $7.2 billion in 2025 to $30.9 billion by 2035. Watch for an SBIR Phase III contract announcement — that is the signal this has moved from demonstration to procurement.

Two More Developments

Michelin Consolidates BFGoodrich Production Into Fort Wayne. Michelin is moving nearly all BFGoodrich tire production to its Fort Wayne facility. Allen County locked in a $157 million abatement in January 2026 — six months before Alabama knew the deal was in play. For manufacturers competing for skilled tire and rubber labor in the Fort Wayne MSA, Michelin's hiring ramp begins in 2027. Benchmark your wage and retention plans against Michelin's published Fort Wayne rates now, not after the ramp starts.

Jasper Rubber Products: 345 Jobs at Risk in Dubois County. Jasper Rubber Products — a 345-employee rubber molding facility operating within the First Brands supply chain — is searching for a buyer. The obstacles to a clean sale: a $286 million federal tariff lien in bankruptcy and an active criminal case in Manhattan. If you source rubber or TPE components through the First Brands supply chain, ask your Tier 1 suppliers directly whether backup sourcing is in place.

Questions for Your Morning Huddle

Q: Does the AES Indiana 2030 base rate freeze protect manufacturers from future rate increases?
A: No. The freeze applies to base rates only. Fuel adjustment charges and TDSIC infrastructure cost-recovery filings are explicitly excluded. AES's next TDSIC filing is deferred to 2028, not frozen, and fuel adjustment charges are already running above the base rate on their own.

Q: How is the data center buildout affecting Indiana manufacturers' electric bills?
A: Indiana has not created dedicated rate classes requiring data centers to fund their own grid infrastructure — unlike Ohio and Virginia. Data center load is being absorbed through the existing rate structure, spreading the infrastructure cost across all ratepayers, including industrial accounts.

Q: What should AES Indiana manufacturers do before the July 7 OUCC rehearing deadline?
A: Update your energy cost model to reflect both the base rate increase and the fuel adjustment charge stacked together. The OUCC's rehearing petition is due July 7 — that is the next window in which the approved rate structure can change. Model your demand charge and fuel adjustment rider exposure separately; do not scale from the residential headline number.

If you want to understand how fuel adjustment charges, TDSIC trackers, and base rate increases layer onto a C&I bill, the TEG Energy Decision Blueprint walks through the full cost structure.

‍