AES Indiana Plans for New Gas to Power Data Centers While Residents and Local Businesses are Likely to Bear the Cost

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.- Today, AES Indiana outlined a planto build a new gas plant solely to serve data centers as part of its 20 year energy plan. The large-scale energy userswill likely drive up electric prices for residents and local businesseswhile using the community's freshwater resources and contributing to air pollution. According to AES Indiana's Integrated Resource Plan, the company is moving forward with a new 700 megawatt (MW) gas plant, but more gas could be added based on data center load growth. AES Indiana's May 2025 Request for Proposalsrequested bids for the construction of gas units totaling as much as 1,600 MWs with a preference that this plant be constructed at one of their existing sites in Martinsville, Indianapolis, or Petersburg. AES Indiana's energy plans also fail to include new solar, wind, or energy efficiency to power data centers, forcing data centers to rely solely on dirty natural gas. The plans also fail to include any new wind and solar projects through 2040 for existing customers, a major backslide from their 2023 plans.

"It's clear AES Indiana is putting Big Tech's interests before Hoosiers'. Instead of prioritizing clean energy sources that will cut costs for customers, these plans grossly fail to address climate and the urgency for us to meet our energy needs in a reliable, affordable way. While Big Tech swoops in and uses our state's resources to power their massive data centers, these costs will likely be forced onto our families and local businesses. We don't want our utility building a massive gas plant to power Big Tech's data centers, and we certainly don't want to pay for it," said Megan Anderson, Senior Campaign Representative, Beyond Coal, at Sierra Club.

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