Two large industrial operations just changed part of the electricity cost and fuel picture for Indiana manufacturers — one by deploying 10 megawatt hours of second-life battery storage at a manufacturing plant in Illinois, the other by opening a $300 million facility in Mississippi that will replace coal and coke at a steel mill in Butler, Indiana. Neither development requires you to copy it. Both of them tell you where large industrial players are putting their money, and why.

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Rivian and Redwood Deploy 10 MWh of Second-Life Battery Storage in Normal, IL

Rivian and Redwood Materials have announced a partnership to install an on-site energy storage system at Rivian's manufacturing plant in Normal, Illinois. Redwood will take more than 100 second-life Rivian battery packs and integrate them into a system managed by their Pack Manager Technology, delivering approximately 10 megawatt hours of dispatchable on-site storage. The stated goal: cut electricity costs at the factory and relieve grid pressure during peak periods.

For Indiana manufacturers operating in territories with high demand charges or constrained feeder capacity, this is a real-world blueprint for attacking the single 15-minute interval each month that drives your demand charge. Second-life storage can also buffer short grid disturbances that would otherwise trip sensitive processes. EV batteries routinely outlast the vehicles they power, which makes them strong candidates for stationary applications where weight and size matter less.

The pattern Rivian is following is worth noting: they converted their own used packs into an asset inside the fence line, partnered with a specialist rather than trying to build the capability themselves, and did it at a scale that produces real operational results. Watch for Rivian and Redwood to publish hard numbers on cost savings, payback period, and how often the system actually dispatches during peak events — those figures will tell you whether similar projects are ready for Indiana facilities or still maturing.

Steel Dynamics Opens $300M Biocarbon Facility — Fuel Ships to Butler, Indiana Mill

Steel Dynamics has opened a $300 million biocarbon facility in Lowndes County, Mississippi, as a joint venture with Michigan-based Aymium. The 90-acre site chemically converts organic waste — sawdust and forest thinnings — into approximately 200,000 tons of biocarbon annually. SDI CEO Mark Millett confirmed the biocarbon will replace coal and coke in SDI's steelmaking operations, with production going to SDI's mill in Columbus, Mississippi and to their Butler, Indiana facility. The project is expected to create nearly 100 jobs by end of 2026, with average salaries between $110,000 and $120,000.

If you rely on SDI's Butler mill, part of your supplier's furnace fuel supply is being diversified away from fossil carbon. That affects long-term supply stability if coal and coke supply chains tighten or face regulatory friction. It also means that if your own customers are starting to ask questions about embedded emissions in the steel they purchase, SDI will be able to point to biocarbon in their process — which could matter when you're competing for work that specifies lower-carbon input materials.

Watch for how SDI reports on biocarbon use at Butler: any mention of cost impact, furnace performance, or changes to product positioning. Also watch for long-term supply contracts between mills and biocarbon producers, which will signal how fast this becomes standard practice across the sector.

Questions for Your Morning Huddle

Q: Should Indiana manufacturers evaluate second-life battery storage to reduce peak demand charges? A: If your facility carries high demand charges or runs against feeder capacity limits, second-life storage is worth a formal internal evaluation — not a vendor sales call, but an analysis of your actual load profile and which 15-minute intervals are driving your monthly demand charge. The technology works at industrial scale; the question is whether the economics hold at your specific load and under your current tariff.

Q: How does Steel Dynamics' biocarbon facility affect the Butler, Indiana steel supply chain? A: SDI is diversifying the furnace fuel at their Butler mill away from coal and coke. For Indiana manufacturers who purchase from that mill, this can improve long-term supply stability if fossil carbon supply chains tighten or face more regulatory pressure. It also positions SDI to respond to customers asking about embedded emissions in purchased steel, which may become a factor in competitive bids.

Q: Where should Indiana manufacturers look for alternative fuel or feedstock options in their own operations? A: Start with your three most energy-intensive production steps and map the single-source inputs each one depends on. SDI's biocarbon move and Rivian's storage build follow the same logic: identify a fragile input, find a credible alternative, and build a supply chain around it before conditions force the decision. Operators who do this proactively hold more control over their cost structure than those who wait on utilities or regulators to solve it.

For a deeper look at how demand charges are calculated and when storage actually moves the number, read [how demand charges work for Indiana C&I operators] on TEG.

Watch this TEG Daily on YouTube: Watch this TEG Daily — Second-Life Storage and Steel Dynamics Biocarbon — on YouTube

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