California SB 54 Puts Indiana Manufacturers on the Clock, Plus Coal Costs and Data Center Grid Pressure

A 17-state federal lawsuit targeting California's SB 54 packaging fee program now puts Indiana manufacturers with California sales exposure directly on the clock: CAA registration obligations are live today, and fee assessments could begin as early as January 2027. Today's brief also covers a third DOE emergency coal order accumulating at $195,000 per day in costs that FERC has already authorized utilities to pass through to ratepayers, an IURC-approved data center power deal placing Amazon and Google in direct competition with manufacturers for MISO grid capacity, a trade petition out of Jeffersonville that could squeeze Indiana solar supply chains, and a Honda headline that looks like good news until you read what was cancelled.

Two More Developments Worth Tracking

Canadian Solar / Hanwha Jeffersonville: Canadian Solar's Jeffersonville cell plant has joined an AD/CVD petition against Hanwha Qcells. The Department of Commerce has 30 days to decide whether to initiate a Korean solar cell investigation. The Southeast Asia case produced preliminary duties ranging from 103 to 234 percent, Korean margins could land materially different, but any Indiana project developer sourcing Korean cells needs a contingency plan before the initiation notice drops.

Honda American-Made Index: Honda placed five vehicles in the top ten of the 2026 American-Made Index, the strongest showing in the index's 21-year history. But Honda cited softening EV demand, policy uncertainty, and trade conditions when it cancelled three Ohio-built EV models in March. The index performance and the EV cancellations are two sides of the same strategic shift toward gas-vehicle production extension. If your contracts are tied to Honda's electrification pipeline, reforecast against that cycle now.

Questions for Your Morning Huddle

Q: Does California SB 54 apply to Indiana manufacturers that ship packaging materials into California?
A: Yes, the Circular Action Alliance fee regime covers glass, aluminum, paper, cardboard, and plastic shipped into California, not just plastics. Indiana manufacturers who are not members of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors are outside the current Oregon preliminary injunction's protection, with CAA registration obligations live now and fee assessments scheduled to begin as early as January 2027.

Q: What is the DOE 202(c) coal order costing Indiana ratepayers, and who pays for it?
A: The Sierra Club estimates the combined cost at approximately $195,000 per day for NIPSCO's Schahfer station and CenterPoint's Culley plant. FERC has already authorized both utilities to recover those costs through MISO tariff changes, meaning Indiana ratepayers, including industrial customers, bear the full cost.

Q: How does Amazon's Indiana data center deal affect manufacturers' access to MISO grid capacity?
A: NiSource argues the dedicated GenCo structure isolates hyperscaler load from the general system, but both the Citizens Action Coalition and the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor are appealing that approval. Regardless of outcome, manufacturers should model transmission constraints, shared interconnection queue exposure, and supply-chain competition for turbines and transformers, MISO projects data center peak demand in the region growing from 1.2 gigawatts today to 20.5 gigawatts by 2030.