Hobart Data Center Printable Evidence Brief

Bottom line

The project has a documented utility pathway and an active regulatory review process.

IURC orders document the NIPSCO contract and GenCo resources, while MISO records the Hobart transmission project. Amazon’s air application is IDEM Permit 089-50590-00739, received July 24 and listed as Initial Processing. No draft or issued permit is shown.

Evidence-status key

• Confirmed by record: supported by the reviewed public record.
• Proposed / under review: requested, planned or pending—not final.
• Not independently verified: a projection, attributed statement or evidence gap that needs more support.

Confirmed application facts

How to read the current evidence

1. The 190-page Amazon document is an application under IDEM Permit 089-50590-00739, not an issued permit.
2. Amazon requested a FESOP/synthetic-minor permit, not a Title V permit.
3. The application describes the on-site diesel engines as emergency backup.
4. IURC and MISO records document a separate utility, generation and transmission pathway.
5. The GenCo portfolio includes 400 MW of battery storage as part of the planned reliability and reserve-capacity resources.
6. The approved agreements pair substantial tax incentives with a $175 million contribution schedule, per-building impact payments and annual compliance review.
7. The Lebanon comparison remains a case study, not the organizing conclusion of this review.

Construction status

Mass grading is active as of July 26, 2026. Northshore Gen reports vertical construction scheduled for late 2026; that remains a planned milestone rather than a completed event. Merrillville’s official site separately describes the Hobart campus as currently under construction, and Hobart’s mayor tied a 2026 city payment to the first building going vertical. Indiana DHS lists a July 20 Form COR filing and a July 21 Standard design release for Project 462383, Hobart Tech Park - ACB. Those state records are not a local building permit or certificate of occupancy.

Court status

On July 28, the court consolidated Cause Nos. 45D11-2512-MI-000644 and 45D10-2606-RA-000007. The cases will proceed together, but the consolidation order does not resolve the merits of the remaining zoning, fill-permit or site-plan claims.

Runtime in plain English

Federal law sets no hour ceiling during a genuine emergency. It generally allows up to 100 hours per engine for maintenance and testing, with a restricted 50-hour non-emergency subset inside that 100. Ordinary bridge generation does not automatically qualify as emergency use. Hour meters and operating records matter.

Public comment

IDEM says formal written-comment periods are usually 30 days. The future Hobart draft notice will provide the controlling dates, permit number, IDEM project contact and exact email or mailing instructions. Monitor IDEM’s Northwest Indiana public notices, which cover Lake County, and use the notice—not Northshore Gen’s correction form—to file a permit comment.

Records to watch

A bridge-power application, IDEM modification, temporary-generation contract, confirmed utility-delay notice or final permit conditions materially different from Amazon’s request would trigger a new review.

Core official sources

• Amazon Data Services, 190-page air-permit application for its Hobart data center submitted to IDEM, pp. 4–14.
• IDEM CAATS status record for Permit 089-50590-00739, received July 24, 2026.
• Indiana DHS Project Activity for Project 462383, July 20–21, 2026.
• IURC Final Orders in Causes 46322 and 46362, June 17, 2026.
• IURC Cause 46322 public docket entry for the July 16 compliance filing; confidential content was not accessed.
• Indiana MyCase July 28 consolidation docket entry for the two active judicial-review matters.
• MISO Project 51141, New Hobart 345-kV Load Addition.
• Hobart Data Center Campus submitted mass-grading plans, October 2025.
• Hobart construction/SWPPP technical review, October 21, 2025.
• Hobart Ordinance 2025-22 and Resolutions 2026-02 and 2026-04.
• Town of Merrillville official construction-status statement, July 2026.
• Hobart mayor’s public 2026 vertical-construction milestone update.
• 40 CFR 60.4211(f), federal emergency-engine operating categories.
• IDEM Orla, LLC draft-permit public record.
• IDEM operating-permit, timeframe and public-participation guidance.
• IDEM Northwest Indiana public notices and air-permit Interested Parties Mailing List.