R M Schahfer
R.M. Schahfer Generating Station is a coal- and natural-gas-fired power plant on the Kankakee River in Wheatfield, Jasper County, Indiana, in MISO territory. It currently has 1,105 MW of nameplate capacity across four operating units: two 129 MW natural-gas combustion turbines (16A, 16B) and two 423.5 MW coal steam units (17, 18); two older coal units (14 and 15) were retired in 2021. The plant is owned and operated by Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO), a division of NiSource Inc. NIPSCO had planned to retire coal units 17 and 18 by the end of 2025 as part of its coal-exit strategy, but the U.S. Department of Energy has issued a series of Federal Power Act Section 202(c) emergency orders forcing the two units to stay available for grid reliability, most recently through December 18, 2026, so their retirement date remains unsettled. NIPSCO is separately pursuing an approximately 400 MW gas peaking project (Unit 16R) on-site to eventually replace units 16A and 16B, while renewable and battery projects are intended to replace the coal capacity when it does retire. The plant sells into the MISO market, settling near the NIPS.SCHAHP17 and NIPS.SCHAHP18 pricing nodes.