NIPSCO Electric Rates Rise 16.75% After $2B Infrastructure Plan Approval

MERRILLVILLE, Ind.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Northern Indiana Public Service Company LLC (NIPSCO) received approval from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) to adjust its electric rates. The newly approved rates will be phased in over multiple steps beginning in July through the beginning of 2026 to spread out the changes to customers.

A Collaborative Process

The approved changes reflect a collaborative agreement among NIPSCO, the Indiana Office of Utility Consumer Counselor (OUCC) and other key stakeholders, including NLMK Indiana, United States Steel Corporation, Walmart Inc., the RV Industry User’s Group and the NIPSCO Industrial Group.

“NIPSCO is committed to connecting our customers with safe and reliable energy that add value to their everyday lives,” said Vince Parisi, NIPSCO President and Chief Operating Officer. “We’re proud of the collaborative outcome reached through this process, which balances the need for critical investments with the importance of minimizing the impact on our customers. We understand that any increase in bills is significant, and we remain focused on supporting our customers through this transition with new assistance programs and continued improvements to service and reliability.”

The IURC decision follows a nearly year-long, extensive review process, which included public input.

Investing in a Safe, Reliable and Sustainable Future

The rate adjustment supports more than $2 billion in capital investments to transition NIPSCO’s electric generation to a more balanced generation portfolio, which is expected to deliver long-term savings and environmental benefits. An additional $769.5 million will fund critical infrastructure upgrades, including replacing aging poles and lines, constructing new substations, and modernizing the electric grid to improve reliability and reduce outage durations.

How will residential customer bills change?

The average residential electric customer using 672 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per month will see an increase of approximately $23 per month, or 16.75%, phased in over multiple steps beginning in July through Q1 2026. This is a reduction from the originally proposed increase of $32 per month.

Actual projected bill impacts may vary by customer, including nonresidential customers, depending on usage and future potential changes in market prices.

Customer Benefits and Assistance Programs

NIPSCO’s investments have already led to a 40% reduction in power outage durations and improved system resilience. The company has replaced over 300 miles of aging underground cable and treated more than 300,000 wood poles to strengthen the grid. Customers also benefit from energy-efficiency programs, enhanced digital tools and a commitment to return 100% of revenues from excess power sales back to customers.

A newly-approved customer assistance program includes bill payment assistance for income-qualified electric customers, fully funded by NIPSCO, as well as elimination of deposits for income-qualified gas and electric customers and waiver of certain reconnection charges for all electric customers.

Along with the new bill payment assistance program, available to customers beginning next year, and beyond the existing state and federal energy assistance programs and moratoriums on winter service disconnections, NIPSCO provides credit arrangements, budget plans and reduced deposits for eligible customers, including:

Payment Agreements: NIPSCO has expanded its payment plan agreements to offer its most flexible payment plans to customers who need financial support, including three-, six- and 12-month plans. Customers can learn more and enroll at NIPSCO.com/PaymentPlans.
Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP): LIHEAP support is available to households that are at or below 60% of the State Median Income (SMI). The program opens on Oct. 1 for online and mail-in applications. Customers can learn more and find out if they qualify at eap.ihcda.in.gov or by calling 2-1-1.
Township Trustees: A limited amount of energy assistance funds are available through local Township Trustee offices. NIPSCO customers are encouraged to contact their local Township Trustee to see what help may be available.
Budget Plan: The budget plan is a free service to all NIPSCO customers to help manage their monthly energy bills by spreading out electric costs over an entire year. Learn more at NIPSCO.com/budget.

As always, any customer experiencing difficulty with paying their bill, regardless of their income, are encouraged to contact NIPSCO’s Customer Care Center from Monday through Friday between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. CT at 1-800-464-7726 to determine what help might be available to them. For more information on bill assistance, customers can visit NIPSCO.com/FinancialSupport.

In addition to offering a variety of payment assistance options, NIPSCO offers a number of energy efficiency programs to help lower energy usage and bills. Visit NIPSCO.com/Save for more information on available programs and other ways to save.

Learn more about NIPSCO’s rates at NIPSCO.com/2025electricrates.

About NIPSCO:

Northern Indiana Public Service Company LLC (NIPSCO), with headquarters in Merrillville, Indiana, has proudly served the energy needs of northern Indiana for more than 100 years. As Indiana’s largest natural gas distribution company and the second-largest electric distribution company, NIPSCO serves approximately 900,000 natural gas and 500,000 electric customers across 32 counties. NIPSCO is part of NiSource’s (NYSE: NI) six regulated utility companies. NiSource is one of the largest fully regulated utility companies in the United States, serving approximately 3.8 million natural gas and electric customers through its local Columbia Gas and NIPSCO brands. More information about NIPSCO and NiSource is available at NIPSCO.com and NiSource.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This Press Release contains "forward-looking statements," within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"). Investors and prospective investors should understand that many factors govern whether any forward-looking statement contained herein will be or can be realized. Any one of those factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements concerning our guidance on adjusted EPS, plans, strategies, objectives, expected performance, expenditures, recovery of expenditures through rates, stated on either a consolidated or segment basis, and any and all underlying assumptions and other statements that are other than statements of historical fact. Expressions of future goals and expectations and similar expressions, including "may," "will," "should," "could," "would," "aims," "seeks," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "intends," "believes," "estimates," "predicts," "potential," "targets," "forecast," and "continue," reflecting something other than historical fact are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based on assumptions that management believes to be reasonable; however, there can be no assurance that actual results will not differ materially.

Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the projections, forecasts, estimates and expectations discussed in this Press Release include, among other things: our ability to execute our business plan or growth strategy, including utility infrastructure investments, or business opportunities, such as data center development and related generation sources and transmission capabilities to meet potential load growth; our ability to manage data center growth in our service territories; potential incidents and other operating risks associated with our business; our ability to work successfully with our third-party investors; our ability to adapt to, and manage costs related to, advances in technology, including alternative energy sources and changes in laws and regulations; our increased dependency on technology; impacts related to our aging infrastructure; our ability to obtain sufficient insurance coverage and whether such coverage will protect us against significant losses; the success of our electric generation strategy; construction risks and supply risks; fluctuations in demand from residential and commercial customers; fluctuations in the price of energy commodities and related transportation costs or an inability to obtain an adequate, reliable and cost-effective fuel supply to meet customer demand; our ability to attract, retain or re-skill a qualified, diverse workforce and maintain good labor relations; our ability to manage new initiatives and organizational changes; the performance and quality of third-party suppliers and service providers; our ability to manage the financial and operational risks related to achieving our carbon emission reduction goals, including our Net Zero Goal (as defined below), including any future associated impact from business opportunities such as data center development as those opportunities evolve; potential cybersecurity attacks or security breaches; increased requirements and costs related to cybersecurity; the actions of activist stockholders; any damage to our reputation; the impacts of natural disasters, potential terrorist attacks or other catastrophic events; the physical impacts of climate change and the transition to a lower carbon future; our debt obligations; any changes to our credit rating or the credit rating of certain of our subsidiaries; adverse economic and capital market conditions, including increases in inflation or interest rates, recession, or changes in investor sentiment; economic regulation and the impact of regulatory rate reviews; our ability to obtain expected financial or regulatory outcomes; economic conditions in certain industries; the reliability of customers and suppliers to fulfill their payment and contractual obligations; the ability of our subsidiaries to generate cash; pension funding obligations; potential impairments of goodwill; the outcome of legal and regulatory proceedings, investigations, incidents, claims and litigation; compliance with changes in, or new interpretations of applicable laws, regulations and tariffs, including impacts of state and federal orders on our ability to carry out our business plan and growth strategy; the cost of compliance with environmental laws and regulations and the costs of associated liabilities; changes in tax laws or the interpretation thereof; and other matters set forth in Item 1, "Business," Item 1A, "Risk Factors" and Part II, Item 7, "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations," of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024 and matters set forth in our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, some of which risks are beyond our control. In addition, the relative contributions to profitability by each business segment, and the assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements relating thereto, may change over time.

All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by the foregoing cautionary statements. We undertake no obligation to, and expressly disclaim any such obligation to, update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect changed assumptions, the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or changes to the future results over time or otherwise, except as required by law.