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Ben Inskeep

@beninskeep.bsky.social
810 followers 562 following 107 posts

Program Director at Citizens Action Coalition | Working on a clean, affordable, and just energy transition | He/Him | Views expressed are mine

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Reposted by Ben Inskeep
Tressie McMillan Cottom @tressiemcphd.bsky.social · 11/03/2026
It takes a certain kind of…narcissistic nihilism to look across the country at people self-organizing against something that is generally a fairly good material symbol of the intangible class warfare that has alienated them and say, “what a silly distraction from what *really* matters.” And yet…
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
Find a link to our filing and more information here: earthjustice.org/press/2026/e...
earthjustice.org
Environmental, Consumer Groups Challenge Trump’s Unlawful Coal Plant Extensions
Extending the lives of unreliable, dirty, and expensive coal plants hurts consumers
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
📰Update: Citizens Action Coalition and other organizations, represented by Earthjustice, have filed a challenge to overturn the illegal DOE orders that directed NIPSCO and CenterPoint to keep unreliable, dilapidated coal plants open and raise our rates to pay for them. My thoughts:
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 22/01/2026
New: Our analysis finds Big Tech is planning nearly 11,000 MW of AI data centers at 10 locations in Indiana. (There are 40+ non-Big Tech data center proposals, too.) Each Big Tech data center will receive 🚨billions🚨 in subsidies under our lucrative sales tax exemption.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
Link: t.co/Ij9diZXFdr
t.co
https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_QnbMiwRaQMGwW6PhqlCTBA?_x_zm_rtaid=a3LDJTa0RUmdmQArxmUKcA.1767969319827.2f61239eb4433df260c84f7e07bff576&_x_zm_rhtaid=363#/registration
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
Cut through the noise on AI data centers by joining experts, including myself, today at 11:30am for a webinar on their impacts. I will present on the energy, sustainability, and affordability impacts of the 49 AI data centers proposed in Indiana, based on our research.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
t.co/Ij9diZXFdr
t.co
https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_QnbMiwRaQMGwW6PhqlCTBA?_x_zm_rtaid=a3LDJTa0RUmdmQArxmUKcA.1767969319827.2f61239eb4433df260c84f7e07bff576&_x_zm_rhtaid=363#/registration
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
Nationally, the cost of natural gas power plants has been rapidly increasing.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
In Indiana, the cost of IMPA's 260-MW combustion turbine coming online in 2028 has increased from an estimated $337.9 million ($1,300/kW) to $464.4 million ($1,785/kW), a 37% budget increase since the project was approved by state regulators in April 2025. iurc.portal.in.gov/docketed-cas...
iurc.portal.in.gov
Docketed Case Details  · IURC Online Services Portal
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
Join me and other experts on January 21 for a webinar on how AI data centers impact our energy ⚡️, water🌊, and communities🏘️. I'll provide an update on the ~50 proposals in Indiana and their impacts to energy & affordability. purdue-edu.zoom.us/webinar/regi...
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
Link to Earthjustice press release, including a quote from me: earthjustice.org/press/2025/t...
earthjustice.org
Trump’s DOE Issues Additional Orders to Illegally Force Indiana Coal Plants to Keep Burning Coal
The Trump Administration delivers coal for the holidays and higher electricity bills
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
Link to DOE orders: (1) www.energy.gov/ceser/federa... (2) t.co/5PpXiNUAWv
t.co
https://www.energy.gov/ceser/federal-power-act-section-202c-culley-order-no-202-25-13
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
It is particularly frustrating to see that NIPSCO has been colluding with the federal government since at least August 2025 to find ways to extend the life of Schahfer, while telling stakeholders it would retire the plant this year.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
Earlier this month, NIPSCO said Schahfer Unit 18 has been in extended outage and would take more than 6 months to repair and rebuild to be able to reliably run it for an extended period of time. youtube.com/watch?v=bCzALF4V45M&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fx.com%2F&source_ve_path=MjM4NTE
youtube.com
2025 Winter Reliability Forum
YouTube video by IURC State of Indiana
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
Another problem? These are some of the most inefficient and least reliable power plants. In fact, Schahfer Unit 18 is so unreliable that it broke down nearly six months ago and has been in an extended *outage* since then! iurc.portal.in.gov/docketed-cas...
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
🚨NEW🚨: DOE has issued illegal orders forcing two Indiana coal plants, Culley Unit 2 (CenterPoint) and Schahfer Units 17 and 18 (NIPSCO), to stay open. Both were scheduled to retire at the end of this month. These costly orders will raise our bills. We can't afford this!
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Reposted by Ben Inskeep
Nathan Kalman-Lamb @nkalamb.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
I’m sorry, but it is disgraceful to be an academic who uses this technology to conduct research. It should be prohibited in all of our scholarly institutions, including universities and journals.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
We have been advocating most of these things in our testimony on energy affordability. But what does the first item about line extensions refer to?
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
4 of 92 counties have now enacted data center moratoriums in Indiana
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
Link: t.co/JhpYYmgAGd
t.co
https://mirrorindy.org/decatur-township-data-center-southside-sabey-tax-abatement-josh-bain/?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Lugar%20Tower%20residents%20say%20they%20don%20t%20f...
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
Sabey Corp. is proposing a 250-MW data center on the southside of Indianapolis. x.com/Ben_Inskeep/...
x.com
Ben Inskeep on X: "🔴NEW INDY DATA CENTER PROPOSAL🔴 Sabey Corp. is proposing a 250-MW data center, which could lead to soaring AES Indiana rates, skyrocketing pollution, and harms to our community. Their website is slick, but full of unsubstantiated claims. Let's examine a few of them 🧵 https://t.co/LH0rFcGYK6" / X
🔴NEW INDY DATA CENTER PROPOSAL🔴 Sabey Corp. is proposing a 250-MW data center, which could lead to soaring AES Indiana rates, skyrocketing pollution, and harms to our community. Their website is slick, but full of unsubstantiated claims. Let's examine a few of them 🧵 https://t.co/LH0rFcGYK6
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
More than 400 people turned up to a data center developer's open house earlier this week in Indianapolis. 👀 Hoosiers are fed up with AI data centers steamrolling their way into our communities and cutting secret backroom deals with utilities & decisionmakers.
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Reposted by Ben Inskeep
Kentucky Lantern @kentuckylantern.com · 17/11/2025
Most states offering incentives to data centers, including Kentucky, don’t disclose which companies benefit, according to a new report. @stateline.org kentuckylantern.com/2025/11/17/m...
kentuckylantern.com
Most states don’t disclose which companies get data center incentives, report finds • Kentucky Lantern
Most states offering incentives to data centers don’t disclose which companies benefit, according to a new report.
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Reposted by Ben Inskeep
Wildstyle Paschall @wildstyledaproducer.threads.net.ap.brid.gy · 17/11/2025
Martindale-Brightwood Press Conference Community leaders blasted MetroBloks and vowed to keep fighting (the data center company) for offering their community: - a "pocket park" (In a neighborhood full of real parks) - a mural - vague promises of job training […] [Original post on threads.com]
Photo by Wildstyle Paschall on November 17, 2025. May be an image of text that says 'ALERT 24 4HOUR HOUR VIDEO URNEILLANCE RVTILLANG CC Ho CИT OOH MLATUCSLAS ពត DATA PATALENTER [ENTER DATA CENTER N DUMPING VIOLATORS WILLBE PROSECUTED ng ngorAIR our AIR un invstraint Comrrinity Brightuen NO DATA Center NO DATA CENTER AL1317HIPHOP'.Photo by Wildstyle Paschall on November 17, 2025. May be an image of one or more people, crowd and text that says 'mo III AeHT 1 24HOUR SUTWVOLLANC STVOL ANCE RAEA DATA CINTER NO DUMPING VIGLATORS DE MILLBE PROSECUTED NO DATA Center ស្ងេត") NO DATA CENTER ALL317HIPHOP'.Photo by Wildstyle Paschall on November 17, 2025. May be an image of crowd and text.Photo by Wildstyle Paschall on November 17, 2025. May be an image of text.
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Reposted by Ben Inskeep
Mutable Joe @mutablejoe.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
🎶 old mcdonald replaced his farm with an energy intensive data center, a i a i o 🎶
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
michiganadvance.com/2025/11/15/a...
michiganadvance.com
A new unifying issue: Just about everyone hates data centers • Michigan Advance
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. Sign up for their newsletter here. It’s not a nove...
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
HEART-WARMING🥰: A new unifying issue: Just about everyone hates AI data centers. “The MAGA crowd and the Bernie bros have both figured out that they’ve been getting duped,” said Kerwin Olson of CAC. Opposition is widespread across political affiliation & geography.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
maybe some people don't think our goal as a society should be more efficiently computed slop from a plagiarism machine that jacks up our utility bills while poisoning the environment and making us dumber
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
CAC has intervened and will be thoroughly reviewing the filing to ensure ratepayers are protected. Link to the docket: iurc.portal.in.gov/docketed-cas...
iurc.portal.in.gov
Docketed Case Details  · IURC Online Services Portal
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
NIPSCO is proposing to make the data center customer pay for transmission upgrades needed to serve the data center. In contrast, Indiana utility I&M is forcing its captive ratepayers to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in transmission upgrades for Big Tech data centers.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
NIPSCO also stated that it executed a 600 MW capacity contract "from a third-party thermal generator" for 2027. Hallador, owner of the coal-fired Merom Station, announced yesterday a $20 million contract for 2027 👀. Is NIPSCO buying coal capacity for its data centers?
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
Other ERAS info posted to MISO shows that NIPSCO is planning to add *another* NGCC in addition to its 2,600 MW proposal for Schahfer, bringing their planned gas additions for data centers to 3,500 MW. The entire NIPSCO utility has a peak of 2,300 MW, before data center load.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
Strangely, NIPSCO has redacted the (1) location of the 2,600 MW gas plant and (2) the year in which the Mitchell battery will come online. It sure looks like this information is publicly posted on MISO's website (images in green)! Battery built by 2028. Gas plants at Schahfer.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
CAC previously broke the news that NIPSCO had filed a request at IDEM for air permits for an enormous new gas plant. x.com/Ben_Inskeep/...
x.com
Ben Inskeep on X: "BREAKING 🚨: NIPSCO has proposed constructing a ~2,300 MW natural gas power plant to serve new data centers, new IDEM filings show. The project could cost billions and be one of the biggest polluters, yet it would not need IURC approval under NIPSCO's pending "GenCo" proposal https://t.co/602m6Zb2HC" / X
BREAKING 🚨: NIPSCO has proposed constructing a ~2,300 MW natural gas power plant to serve new data centers, new IDEM filings show. The project could cost billions and be one of the biggest polluters, yet it would not need IURC approval under NIPSCO's pending "GenCo" proposal https://t.co/602m6Zb2HC
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
New🔴: NIPSCO is requesting IURC approval of a 15-year special contract with a 2,400 MW data center customer, whose identity is not revealed but is "one of the largest corporations in the world." The data centers will be served with gas, batteries, and possibly coal.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
A new 500 MW customer -- most likely, another data center -- is proposing to come to Fort Wayne, according to a new AEP submission. Its ~10 miles away from a 1,200 MW Google data center under construction.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
Indiana utilities are proposing a massive build out of fossil fuels to meet the new demands of Google, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft. A lot of the costs could fall on existing ratepayers unless policymakers take action to establish consumer protections.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
Note: it is possible there is some double counting here if the mysterious 2,400 MW large load customer just announced by NIPSCO turns out to be Microsoft. But it is more likely we are undercounting. Many Big Tech companies are working on additional data centers here in secret.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
We (Citizens Action Coalition) are now tracking more than 10,000 MW of data centers being planned and constructed in Indiana by the Big 4 tech companies. These facilities could use more than 80% of our electricity. Dozens of additional large data centers have also been proposed by others.
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DeSmog @desmog.com · 05/11/2025
🔴 NEW 🔴 Lomborg for years has argued in op-eds, lectures, and the media that there are more important global issues to prioritize than climate change, writing in April that “it is not the existential threat that some would have us believe.”
buff.ly
Bill Gates Gave $3.5M to Think Tank Run by Climate Crisis Denier Bjorn Lomborg
Tax records reveal that the billionaire’s foundation has donated for years to Lomborg’s Copenhagen Consensus Center.
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onion person @junlper.beer · 07/11/2025
i'm very glad this technology is being forced onto us everywhere on all levels
obama
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
Link: t.co/Ajsg9YBLrj
t.co
https://www.ibj.com/articles/braun-purdue-lead-nuclear-summit-to-promote-reactors-for-indiana?utm_source=delivra&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=IBJ%20Eight%408&utm_id=48699892
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
The ink isn't even dry on AES Indiana's IRP, which found SMRs are not cost effective under any scenario, and the utility is announcing it is doing a study on siting SMRs at its power plants!? More imprudent and wasteful spending that will result in rate hikes for Indy residents.
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Hank Green @hankgreen.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
AI and Crypto data centers need to be the first ones to lose power in a brown out.
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
A follow up email from IDEM indicates the data center sent untested, potentially contaminated soil to other locations and directs the data center to address the issue in its response due this month t.co/nXjS6FuTMW
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
This data center being built in Michigan City, IN, violated environmental policies by taking soil so heavily contaminated that it reeked of chemical odor and, instead of testing it for contamination, used it to create berms for the data center. t.co/VSDnVIyUNg
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
A data center development recently caught ignoring environmental laws in Indiana is also being picketed by union workers for relying primarily on out-of-state labor. Not only do data centers provide few permanent jobs, they aren't even using local labor to build 'em! local150.org/news/local-1...
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
Link to docket: iurc.portal.in.gov/docketed-cas...
iurc.portal.in.gov
Docketed Case Details  · IURC Online Services Portal
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Ben Inskeep @beninskeep.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
Residential customers will pay 40% of the transmission-related costs and 57% of the distribution-related costs associated with the project.
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