NiSource Signs 20-Year Energy Agreement with Microsoft for 1,100 MW Northwest Indiana Data Center Campus

NiSource has signed a long-term energy agreement with Microsoft to power the technology company's previously announced data center campus in northwest Indiana, a deal that underscores the intensifying push by hyperscale operators to secure dedicated generation for their rapidly expanding artificial intelligence and cloud infrastructure.

The 20-year agreement, announced on October 16, 2026, will see Microsoft begin taking electric service in 2028. Under the terms of the deal, NiSource's GenCo pool portfolio will grow by approximately 1,100 MW of new generation resources, with Microsoft fully funding the generation and transmission capacity needed to serve its load. Separately, GenCo has contracted 600 MW of battery storage under a long-term tolling agreement, adding a significant storage component to the utility's resource mix.

The companies did not disclose the campus's IT load or total electric demand, leaving the precise scale of Microsoft's computing footprint at the site unspecified. The agreement nonetheless represents one of the larger utility-hyperscaler power arrangements announced in the Midwest, reflecting a broader trend of data center developers and their utility partners structuring long-term supply deals that pair new generation with storage to meet round-the-clock load requirements.

For NiSource, the arrangement provides a creditworthy anchor customer that funds the infrastructure buildout, reducing risk for the utility and its existing ratepayers while expanding its generation fleet. For Microsoft, the deal secures a long-term, dedicated power supply in a region where grid interconnection queues and capacity constraints have become increasingly challenging for large-load customers.

The agreement also highlights the growing role of battery storage in supporting data center operations, as utilities look to pair intermittent and baseload generation with storage to ensure reliability. The 600 MW tolling arrangement positions GenCo to dispatch stored energy during peak demand periods, complementing the new generation capacity dedicated to Microsoft's campus.