AES Indiana cancels first Indianapolis community open house due to threats

AES Indiana cancelled the first of three planned community open houses in Indianapolis Tuesday evening due to threats, it said in an email.

“AES Indiana unfortunately must reschedule tonight’s open house due to threats,” it read. “The safety of our people, community partners, and customers in attendance is our number one priority. Thank you for your understanding.”

Electric utility costs have recently come under scrutiny across Indiana as costs rise. The body that regulates Indiana’s utilities recently announced it would investigate the state’s five investor-owned utilities after pressure from state lawmakers who had received complaints from constituents.

And, Monday, the Indianapolis utility’s parent company, AES, announced it agreed to be purchased by a subsidiary of BlackRock, a group of large domestic and foreign investors.

AES Indiana created the scheduled event Tuesday at the OrthoIndy Foundation YMCA to give customers an opportunity to connect directly with their staff.

“These events are an opportunity to ask questions, get help understanding your bill, learn about programs that may help you save, and hear about our plans to keep electric service reliable and affordable,” it said.

The email did not say when or where the event would be rescheduled.

The remaining meetings on the schedule include:

• Tuesday, March 10 from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m at the Frederick Douglass Family Center
• Tuesday, March 11 from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m at the Decatur Township School for Excellence

Registration is not required and the events are free to attend.

Contact WFYI data journalist Zak Cassel at zcassel@wfyi.org