An hour before the first AES Indiana community open house for the year was set to happen, the electric company said it had been cancelled due to threats.
AES Indiana shared on Feb. 24 that community open houses would allow customers to have one-on-one time with team members to ask questions and get clear information about their service. They were scheduled for March 3, March 10 and March 11 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at different locations.
The open house for tonight was set to be at OrthoIndy Foundation YMCA on the city’s northeast side.
“AES Indiana, unfortunately, must reschedule tonight’s open house due to threats,” the utility company said in a statement to customers. “The safety of our people, community partners, and customers in attendance is our number one priority. Thank you for your understanding.”
AES did not specify what date the community open house would be rescheduled to.
The cancelled event comes a day after AES Indiana announced a group of private equity investors would be taking over the company after a $33 billion deal.
In a press release on March 2, AES Indiana said Global Infrastructure Partners, a subsidiary of Blackrock, and other private equity investors will acquire AES Corporation.
It’s unclear what impacts the acquisition will have on Indianapolis residents and their rising electric bills.
AES Indiana serves more than 520,000 users in the area. The transaction will close as early as late this year.
The Indiana branch of AES will remain locally managed and operated, according to the utility company.
The AES Indiana utilities division is undergoing significant demand increases, as noted in the press release announcing the acquisition. AES Indiana provides electricity to all of Marion County, along with a narrow strip of land extending southwest into Morgan County and northwest into Boone County.
“In the United States, AES’ electric utilities in Indiana and Ohio are experiencing significant demand growth and remain focused on maintaining reliable service and affordable rates for all customers,” AES said in a release. “As a private company, AES will continue to invest prudently in utility assets to meet the growing energy needs of all 1.1 million customers.”
AES Indiana is among several public utilities working to meet the growing power demands of energy-intensive data centers, considering locations within its service territory. The company is already under contract to supply electricity to a hyperscale Google data center in Morgan County, with several additional projects pending approval from local officials.
AES has requested a rate increase that would raise the typical household’s electricity bill by roughly $10 by 2027.
The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission is reviewing the request.
Separately, the commission launched an investigative inquiry that will call in the state’s five largest investor-owned utilities, one of which is AES Indiana, to discover how the utilities calculate customer bills and how they plan to lower bills in the near future as energy demand soars.
Jade Jackson is a Public Safety Reporter for the Indianapolis Star. You can email her at Jade.Jackson@IndyStar.com and follow her on X, formerly Twitter @IAMJADEJACKSON. Alysa Guffey writes business and development stories for IndyStar. Have a story tip? Contact her at amguffey@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: AES Indiana cancels first community open house due to threats
Reporting by Jade Jackson and Alysa Guffey, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
