Industrial power users fighting to get off grid
Indiana’s manufacturers and municipal utilities are preparing to wage a battle with investor-owned power companies in their desire to get a handle on rising electricity costs.
Alternative energy
Articles
BlueIndy faces challenges in quest for wide adoption
BlueIndy plans to charge past its skeptics as its electric car-sharing program launches in Indianapolis Sept. 2, leaving behind the political consternation about whether Mayor Greg Ballard went rogue in green-lighting the program in the first place.
Formula E series could race at Speedway
The all-electric Formula E race series has been so successful in its first year that some insiders are talking about its cars competing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and even filling the grid of the Indianapolis 500.
Brevini pays $375K to Delaware County for unmet jobs
An Italian wind turbine maker is expected to pay a central Indiana county $375,000 for failing to meet a goal of hiring 200 workers by the end of 2014.
Indiana’s use of renewable energy up over past decade
In 2002, less than 2 percent of the state’s energy use came from renewable resources. By 2012, the last year for which objective statistics are available, the rate increased to more than 5 percent.
Work progressing on eastern Indiana wind farm
Dozens of 320-foot-tall towers are going up in an eastern Indiana county for what will be another wind farm in the state.
Developer pulls plug on $300M Tipton wind farm
A Colorado-based developer said the project is no longer feasible because of conditions that a zoning board placed on the project.
Plan approved for wind farm; Purdue to do research
Zoning officials have approved scaled-back plans for a northern Indiana wind farm where Purdue University researchers plan to study the impact of the towering turbines.
Largest solar farm on Superfund site goes online
The nation's largest solar farm built on a federal Superfund site is now generating power in Indianapolis on property once tainted by a long-closed plant's wood-treating operations.
Ball State prepares to idle its coal-fired boilers
Ball State University officials are preparing to stop burning coal at the campus steam plant as the school pushes ahead with its partial conversion to geothermal energy.
Bottleneck bedevils Indiana’s mighty wind turbines
Lack of transmission lines keeps green energy from flowing to the Midwest.
Duke Energy Indiana seeks solar power proposals
Duke Energy Indiana is taking proposals for solar power projects called for under a settlement the utility reached last year with consumer groups.
Car guy falls in love with Tesla after visiting new local dealership—and taking a drive
The new electric-powered Tesla Model S corners a lot like a Lamborghini and has more than twice the range of a Nissan Leaf.
Wind farm says Duke violated contract
The owner of a northern Indiana wind farm says Duke Energy Indiana Inc.—which had agreed to buy energy the 87-turbine operation produces—breached its contract, “proving disastrous.
IDEM chief: Fed rules essentially ban new coal plants
The commissioner of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, Thomas Easterly, told lawmakers that the pending federal regulations will essentially rule out coal-fired power plants that currently generate much of the state’s electricity.
Citizens’ alternative fuel subsidiary nabs UPS contract
Kinetrex Energy in March will begin supplying liquefied natural gas to five of UPS’s fueling stations in Indiana, Illinois, Ohio and Missouri.
New vision for Eastgate includes solar farm
A former east-side shopping mall will soon be covered in solar panels, possibly the most transformative of property owner Alex Carroll’s various redevelopment efforts.
Tesla luxury electric car seeking outpost at Fashion Mall
Tesla Motors Inc. is eyeing space in the Fashion Mall at Keystone and is seeking a zoning variance to sell cars there and to install charging stations within the parking garage.
Landfill operators explore energy-creation options
Gas produced by a southern Indiana landfill could be captured and used to generate revenue, but Cummins workers who studied the possibilities say local officials shouldn't take the idea to the bank just yet.
Corn shortage idles 20 ethanol plants nationwide
Twenty of the nation’s ethanol plants have ceased production over the past year, including two in Indiana. There is growing concern about what happens if last year’s drought lingers through another corn-growing season.