Through community involvement, economic development, and current initiatives such as Your Energy, Your Future, NIPSCO strives to impact their communities positively while providing reliable, and affordable energy.
NIPSCO's Your Energy, Your Future initiative includes the retirement of its coal generation by the end of 2028 and the introduction of renewable energy sources including wind and solar. As part of this plan, NIPSCO is looking to retire the Wheatfield generation plant by the end of 2023 which is ahead of schedule and the Michigan City generation plant by the end of 2028.
"We have announced 14 renewable projects which are expected to bring 3,300 more megawatts of capacity to our portfolio," said Manager for Public Affairs & Economic Development Denise Conlon.
"We're currently participating in or 2021 Integrated Resource Plan, which is referred to as IRP. It's a regulatory process used to analyze how electric utilities will meet customer needs in the future," Conlon said. "The process includes public forums of participation soliciting input from customers, environmental organizations and other key stakeholders."
NIPSCO works closely with local municipalities and governments as a part of its community outreach. NIPSCO also has community advisory panel groups that are made up of local community leaders who serve as a liaison between community members and NIPSCO, bringing concerns and questions to the company.
"As Public Affairs / Economic Development Managers, we assist many community partners and act as a conduit between them and internal stakeholders within NIPSCO," Conlon said.
Additionally, NIPSCO interacts closely with many nonprofit organizations across Northern Indiana. NIPSCO currently has approximately 40 employees serving on over 100 nonprofit boards. In 2020, NIPSCO gave more than $2 million to multiple organizations across the 30 Northern Indiana counties it serves. NIPSCO also offers public environmental and safety grants each year.
“Our number one goal as an electric and natural gas utility is to provide dependable, safe electric and natural gas service to our customers. At NIPSCO, We’re lucky that leadership within our organization really believes in giving back to the communities that we serve,” said Rick Calinski, Director of Public Affairs and Economic Development.
NIPSCO also fundraises for a charity of choice each year. This fundraiser allows NIPSCO employees to vote on what nonprofit organization they would like to support. The money is fundraised through events, NIPSCO gear sales, and more.
"This year's Charity of Choice initiative is supporting mental health awareness," Conlon said.
Economic development is another way NIPSCO strives to support its local communities. NIPSCO helps fund organizations and provide grants for groups to promote their communities, in hopes of bringing in more new business investment, tax base and jobs across Northern Indiana.
“Economic Development is a team game; we work closely with local municipalities and counties to help attract and land new projects within the communities we serve,” Calinski said.
To learn more about NIPSCO and the ways the company helps to better its community, visit https://www.nipsco.com/. To learn more about La Porte Economic Advancement Partnership, visit https://laportepartnership.com/.