# LaPorte County, Indiana: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy Home to Michigan City, Michigan Township and Center Township LaPorte County sits inside the data center build-out. The SAVRN Data Center Map lists 3 data centers in LaPorte County, 4% of Indiana's total. LaPorte County is home to Michigan City, Michigan Township, Center Township and La Porte. Owners plan to retire 540 MW more by 2035, led by Michigan City in 2028. Its power plants have 546 MW of capacity, 99% of it coal. Electrical contractors employ 150, at an average $89,304 a year. 3 data centers on the SAVRN Data Center Map, 4% of Indiana's 546 MW of operating power plants, mostly coal 19.09¢ per kWh for Northern Indiana Pub Serv Co residential customers, 2024 ## Cities and towns in LaPorte County LaPorte County is home to Michigan City, Michigan Township, Center Township and La Porte. Michigan City31,338 residents Michigan Township26,881 residents Center Township25,168 residents La Porte22,600 residents Coolspring Township15,408 residents New Durham Township8,194 residents Westville5,387 residents Scipio Township5,132 residents Kankakee Township4,743 residents Springfield Township3,731 residents Pleasant Township3,521 residents Union Township2,421 residents Wills Township2,111 residents Trail Creek1,987 residents Galena Township1,918 residents Hudson Township1,823 residents Lincoln Township1,797 residents Cass Township1,757 residents Noble Township1,591 residents Clinton Township1,529 residents Kingsford Heights1,500 residents Washington Township1,234 residents Long Beach1,158 residents Wanatah972 residents And 8 smaller places. Unincorporated communities (governed by the county): Fish Lake, Hanna, Hudson Lake, Rolling Prairie. Residents are 2025 Census estimates for the part of each city, town or township inside this county. Census publishes no annual estimate for unincorporated communities. ## What changed in LaPorte County | Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Indiana | |---|---|---|---|---| | Population (2020 → 2025) | 112,279 | 111,294 | ▼ 0.9% | 16th of 92 by size | | Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 40,362 | 40,196 | ▼ 0.4% | 52nd of 92 by growth | | Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $41,386 | $54,051 | ▲ 30.6% | — | | Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 4.0% | 3.8% | ▼ 0.2pts | — | | Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 0 MW | | — | | Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 0 MW | | — | Northern Indiana Pub Serv Co is the largest utility serving LaPorte County, one of 4 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 19.09¢/kWh in 2024, above the 14.63¢ median for Indiana utilities. Employers here counted 40,196 jobs in 2025, down 0.4% from 2019. Unemployment was 3.8% in August 2026, against 4.0% in 2019. 111,294 people live here, down 0.9% since 2020. ## Who powers LaPorte County ### Utilities with service territory in LaPorte County | Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | Northern Indiana Pub Serv Co | Investor Owned | Bundled | 430,648 | 19.09¢ | 25% | | Indiana Michigan Power Co | Investor Owned | Bundled | 422,062 | 16.31¢ | 28% | | Kankakee Valley Rural E M C | Cooperative | Bundled | 18,994 | 15.20¢ | 18% | | Town of Kingsford Heights | — | — | — | — | — | Customer counts, prices and sales shares cover each utility's whole system in the state, not only this county. Commercial sales include data centers. ### Operating power plants | Technology | Capacity | Share | |---|---|---| | Coal | 540 MW | 99% | | Natural gas | 3 MW | 1% | | Other technologies | 3 MW | 1% | | Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since | |---|---|---|---|---| | Michigan City | Northern Indiana Pub Serv Co | Coal | 540 MW | 1974 | | Deercroft I & II LFGTE | Wabash Valley Power Assn, Inc | Natural gas | 6 MW | 1999 | ### Scheduled to retire | Plant | Technology | MW | Year | |---|---|---|---| | Michigan City | Coal | 540 MW | 2028 | ## The LaPorte County labor market | Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. | |---|---|---|---| | All industries | 40,196 | $54,051 | 1.00 | | Electrical contractors | 150 | $89,304 | 0.52 | Concentration is the BLS location quotient: 1.0 means the industry holds the same share of local jobs as it does nationally. Industry rows count private employers; cells BLS suppresses are left out. ## Data centers and local rules in LaPorte County 3 data centers in LaPorte County are on the SAVRN Data Center Map. ## LaPorte County and its neighbors Of the 5 counties that border LaPorte County, St. Joseph County carries the most build-out activity: data centers, planned generation and operating plants combined. [[[[[ | County | Population | Jobs since 2019 | Operating MW | Planned MW | Data centers | Local measures | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | LaPorte County | 111,294 | ▼ 0.4% | 546 MW | — | 3 | — | | Berrien County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/michigan/berrien-county) MI | 152,444 | ▼ 0.9% | 2,312 MW | — | — | — | | Jasper County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/indiana/jasper-county) | 33,894 | ▼ 3.0% | 1,637 MW | 448 MW | — | — | | Porter County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/indiana/porter-county) | 176,049 | ▲ 3.5% | 240 MW | — | 1 | — | | St. Joseph County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/indiana/st-joseph-county) | 272,861 | ▼ 2.3% | 1,012 MW | — | 20 | 1 | | Starke County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/indiana/starke-county) | 23,425 | ▼ 2.1% | 891 MW | — | — | 1 | ## More of Indiana [All Indiana countiesThe state power page and county mapOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/indiana)[St. Joseph County272,861 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/indiana/st-joseph-county)[Porter County176,049 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/indiana/porter-county)[Jasper County33,894 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/indiana/jasper-county)[Starke County23,425 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/indiana/starke-county) ## LaPorte County, answered from the record ### Who provides electricity in LaPorte County, Indiana? 4 utilities have service territory in LaPorte County in the EIA-861 2024 report: Northern Indiana Pub Serv Co, Indiana Michigan Power Co, Kankakee Valley Rural E M C, Town of Kingsford Heights. The largest, Northern Indiana Pub Serv Co, charged residential customers 19.09¢/kWh on average in 2024. ### What county is Michigan City, IN in? Michigan City is in LaPorte County, Indiana. About 31,338 people live there (2025 Census estimate). ### What county is Michigan Township, IN in? Michigan Township is in LaPorte County, Indiana. About 26,881 people live there (2025 Census estimate). ### What county is Center Township, IN in? Center Township is in LaPorte County, Indiana. About 25,168 people live there (2025 Census estimate). ### What power plants are in LaPorte County? 2 operating plants with 546 MW of capacity. The largest is Michigan City (540 MW, coal). ### Are there data centers in LaPorte County? Yes. The SAVRN Data Center Map lists 3 data centers in LaPorte County. ### Is LaPorte County adding jobs? Employers counted 40,196 jobs in 2025 against 40,362 in 2019 (-0.4%, BLS QCEW). ### Does LaPorte County have a data center moratorium? No county-level measure is on record for LaPorte County. Indiana has 40 local measures statewide, listed on the state page. --- Canonical: https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/indiana/laporte-county Updated: 2026-10-08. Refreshed weekly by SAVRN from EIA, BLS, BEA, Census and the SAVRN trackers. License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).