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Indiana Energy Providers Propose Projects to Promote Electric, Natural Gas Vehicles

April 12, 2018
Group Proposes Statewide Network of Electric Vehicle Recharging Stations

Changing out diesel vehicles for ones that run on electric and natural gas and creating a statewide corridor of electric vehicle charging stations are among the proposals from the Indiana Energy Association (IEA) for using Indiana’s $40.9 million settlement from the Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust Fund.

The IEA is the trade association of the investor-owned electric and natural gas energy providers, which includes NIPSCO, Indiana Michigan Power, Duke Energy, Indianapolis Power & Light Company, Citizens Energy Group, and Vectren.

Indiana has received the funds as part of the $2.9 billion Volkswagen settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to mitigate the excess nitrogen oxide emissions caused by the company’s illegal use of emission defeat devices in certain diesel vehicles.

Maassel called the statewide Crossroads of America EV Corridor a “bold and transformative project that would improve Indiana’s environment, promote the health of all Hoosiers, and encourage economic development for decades.”

IEA indicates the new charging stations are critical to the continued growth of electric vehicle use. IEA points out there are currently only 23 publicly-available DC fast-charging stations in Indiana. With only six of these stations located outside the Indianapolis metropolitan area, most electric vehicles cannot travel across Indiana, according to the IEA.

IEA said focusing on the replacement of diesel fleet vehicles, such as school buses, transit buses, and tractor trailers, with electric and natural gas vehicles would produce significant improvements in air quality because 50 percent of nitrogen oxide emissions in the state are produced by mobile sources.

IEA believes its suggestions for using the Volkswagen settlement funds are consistent with the strong environmental commitment of IEA members companies. Thanks to billions of dollars of investment since the year 2000, emissions from Indiana’s electric power industry are down 43% for carbon dioxide, 89% for sulfur dioxide, and 77% for nitrogen oxide.

“To have cleaner air, we need cleaner vehicles. We believe transitioning from diesel to electric and natural gas vehicles is an important step toward ensuring cleaner air for all Hoosiers,” Maassel concluded.

The full press release from Indiana-Michigan Power is at this link.

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