Indra Energy, the alternative electricity and natural gas supplier that operates through a family of Palmco-branded companies, has been the subject of lawsuits and regulatory actions in at least six states, and has paid or committed more than $12 million in settlements and penalties. The largest recent case is a $3.5 million Illinois lawsuit settled in December 2024, which set aside $2.7 million for customer refunds and barred the company from signing up new Illinois customers for 18 months.
The Illinois Settlement and Who Gets Refunds
On December 18, 2024, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced a $3.5 million consent decree with Palmco Power IL, doing business as Indra Energy, filed in Cook County Circuit Court as case No. 2024CH10487.1Illinois Attorney General. Attorney General Raoul Reaches $3.5 Million Settlement With Alternative Retail Electric Supplier Of that amount, $2.7 million was designated for a restitution fund for customers who received electricity from Indra for at least 30 days beginning in October 2017. Refunds are calculated based on each customer’s electricity usage.2My Journal Courier. Indra Energy Illinois Settlement
The operational terms are as significant as the money. Indra is barred from marketing to or enrolling new Illinois customers for 18 months beginning September 1, 2024. If it resumes operations after that, it must accept two years of oversight by an independent compliance monitor. The decree permanently prohibits the company from misrepresenting utility affiliations, altering telemarketing recordings, claiming consumers will save money without a factual basis, and enrolling consumers without consent. Indra is also barred from paying employees or vendors on sales volume alone; future compensation must factor in compliance.3Energy Choice Matters. Palmco Power IL Settlement Details
Palmco Power IL denied the allegations. The consent decree explicitly states the settlement is not an admission of wrongdoing or liability.3Energy Choice Matters. Palmco Power IL Settlement Details
What Indra Energy Was Accused of Doing
The Illinois complaint describes a set of practices that reappear, with local variations, in nearly every state action against the company. According to the Attorney General’s Office, Indra and its third-party sales vendors:
- Told consumers they were calling from or affiliated with ComEd or Ameren, the state’s two largest utilities.
- Promised free, government-subsidized tablet computers to induce sign-ups.
- Enrolled consumers without their knowledge or consent, a practice regulators call “slamming.”
- Promised savings even though customers who switched “virtually always paid more” than they would have on their existing utility.4MyStateline. Illinois Reaches $3.5M Settlement With Alternative Energy Supplier
- Tampered with telemarketing call recordings, which serve as compliance records.3Energy Choice Matters. Palmco Power IL Settlement Details
The pricing complaint is consistent across states. Regulators have described Indra’s variable rates as “disconnected from the market” despite being marketed as market-based, with introductory “teaser” rates giving way to charges well above the local utility’s price.54ClassAction. Have You Been Overcharged for Electricity or Natural Gas by Indra Energy In Ohio, staff at the Public Utilities Commission alleged the markup reached as much as four times the utility’s standard rate.6PUCO. PUCO Adopts Settlement Agreement Regarding Retail Energy Supplier Palmco The company has generally attributed misconduct to third-party marketing vendors and said it terminated the agents involved, but regulators have held Indra itself accountable.
Actions in Other States
New Jersey: $5.28 Million
In May 2014, the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, the Board of Public Utilities, and the Division of Consumer Affairs sued Palmco Power NJ and Palmco Energy NJ for violations of the state’s Electric Discount and Energy Competition Act, Consumer Fraud Act, and Truth-in-Consumer Contract, Warranty and Notice Act. The state alleged aggressive door-to-door and telephone solicitation and rates that exceeded what the company’s own contracts described, particularly during the harsh 2013–2014 winter. The case settled in June 2016 for $5.28 million, with up to $4.5 million earmarked for consumer restitution, $500,000 in civil penalties, and roughly $286,000 in legal costs.7NJ Office of the Attorney General. Palmco NJ $5.28 Million Settlement
New York: $2 Million
Around 2011, Palmco affiliate Columbia Utilities settled with the New York Attorney General, paying $2 million in customer refunds after being accused of misleading thousands of consumers. Columbia Utilities denied the fraud allegations but agreed to stricter oversight.8ABC7 New York. Former Employee Comes Out Against Gas and Electric Company PALMco
Ohio: Exit From the State
PUCO staff recommended a $10.2 million fine in late 2019 after more than 50 consumer complaints, including cases where the company’s electric rate rose more than 70% in a single month.9Akron Beacon Journal. State Utilities Commission Recommends $10 Million Fine Rather than pay, Palmco settled in January 2020 by agreeing to leave the Ohio market. It provided about $385,000 in credits to customers enrolled between December 2018 and April 2019, and its owners, officers, and partners were barred from Ohio’s retail energy markets for five years.6PUCO. PUCO Adopts Settlement Agreement Regarding Retail Energy Supplier Palmco
Pennsylvania: Telemarketing and Slamming
In July 2022, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office secured a $185,900 settlement over illegal telemarketing, including calls to numbers on the Do-Not-Call list, pre-recorded messages, and misleading offers of rebates and energy savings.10CBS News Pittsburgh. PA Attorney General Josh Shapiro Secures Six-Figure Settlement to Stop Telemarketing Violations A separate PUC slamming complaint from a York County resident alleged that a door-to-door agent forged her signature on enrollment documents.11FOX43. Energy Slamming: New Service You Never Approved In October 2024, a PUC Administrative Law Judge recommended a $2,000 civil penalty in a related slamming docket after Palmco failed to answer or appear, above the usual $1,000-per-incident amount under the PUC’s zero-tolerance policy. Indra denied the allegations.12Energy Choice Matters. PA PUC ALJ Initial Decision on Palmco Slamming Complaint
Massachusetts: $460,000
The Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities opened an investigation into Palmco Power MA in May 2020 under Docket D.P.U. 20-48, with a Delegated Commissioner initially proposing to suspend or revoke the company’s license and alleging that Indra obstructed a consumer complaint inquiry and provided false reports.13Energy Choice Matters. Palmco Power MA Notice of Probable Violation The case settled with a temporary ban on residential telemarketing, refunds to 23 customers, and a $460,000 payment. The license was not revoked.14Massachusetts DPU. Settlements Between Competitive Supply Companies and the DPU
Where Indra Energy Stands Now
As of mid-2026, Indra Energy is still barred from marketing to or enrolling new Illinois customers under the 18-month moratorium that began September 1, 2024. Its owners remain shut out of Ohio’s retail energy market under the five-year ban imposed in 2020. The company continues to hold supplier licenses in several other states.
CEO Robert Palmese was granted electric and natural gas broker licenses in Washington, D.C. in June 2026 for a new entity called Energy Fairies LLC.15Energy Choice Matters. DC PSC Grants Energy Fairies LLC Broker Licenses
Who Owns Indra Energy
Indra Energy operates through state-specific Palmco entities, including Palmco Power IL, Palmco Energy PA, Palmco Power NJ, Palmco Energy OH, and Palmco Power MA. All are owned in equal 25% shares by Christina Ann Palmese, Ronald Palmese Jr., Robert Vincent Palmese, and Stephen Paul Palmese.16Pennsylvania PUC. Palmco Energy PA LLC Filing Robert Palmese is Managing Member and CEO. The company is headquartered in Brooklyn, New York, with offices in Marlton, New Jersey, and Philadelphia.17BBB. PALMco Business Profile Indra markets itself as an Energy Service Company offering electricity and natural gas as an alternative to traditional utilities. It does not generate power; it buys energy on wholesale markets and resells it to residential and commercial customers, usually on variable-rate contracts that can move sharply after an introductory period.