Louisiana Data Center News

Apr 6, 2026

Roundup: US services activity drops / Billy Nungesser / Data centers

Investors are pressuring Amazon, Microsoft and Google to disclose more about the environmental impact of their rapidly expanding data centers.

Main announcement: Investors/shareholders are pressing Amazon, Microsoft and Google to disclose water and energy use and other environmental impacts of U.S. data centers; AI-driven demand is cited as driving expansion, and community opposition has stalled some projects.
Context and related details: The push is occurring ahead of annual meetings, with shareholders seeking greater transparency. Related factual details from the bulletin: S&P Global‘s final March U.S. services business activity index fell to 49.8 (preliminary 51.1); Louisiana Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser will speak at the Press Club of Baton Rouge on April 6, doors open 11:30 a.m., program begins 12:15 p.m. at Drusilla Place Catering, addressing Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism initiatives for 2026.

Apr 2, 2026

Roundup: Starbucks / Blue Owl pullback / US trade deficit

Starbucks has announced plans to expand tipping options and introduce performance-based bonuses for U.S. baristas this summer.

Main announcement: Starbucks will expand tipping options and introduce performance-based bonuses for baristas in the United States, changes expected this summer that could boost worker pay by up to 8% amid ongoing labor negotiations with unionized stores.
Additional items / context: Blue Owl is facing a surge in investor redemptions (nearly 22% requested in its flagship fund; more than 40% in its tech-focused fund) and has capped withdrawals at 5%; Blue Owl is also the majority owner of Meta’s $10 billion Louisiana data center project. Separately, the U.S. trade deficit widened in February as exports (notably gold and natural gas) and imports (computers and autos) both rose.

Apr 1, 2026

Lafayette’s LFT Fiber Steadily Expands, Offers Even Faster Speeds

LFT Fiber has announced expanded fiber coverage and new faster residential speed tiers.

Main announcement: LFT Fiber (formerly LUS Fiber) expanded its fiber footprint, now passing 95,000 households and businesses in Lafayette Parish, completed a planned expansion into Eunice (announced in February), and is extending 2 Gbps and 5 Gbps residential service tiers (previously business-only). The provider currently offers 250 Mbps ($55/month), 500 Mbps ($65/month), and 1 Gbps ($85/month) retail tiers.
Background and details: Expansion has been funded in part by ARPA and other state and federal broadband grants (linked reporting references a $31 million federal grant for rural expansion); LFT emphasizes reinvestment of revenue into the community and published a website FAQ explaining staged rollouts. The article also notes Louisiana’s municipal broadband preemption laws that limit other municipalities from following Lafayette’s model.

Apr 1, 2026

Carr's FCC Expected to Release Public Notice on Achieving U.S. Drone Dominance

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr is seeking new ideas on ways to boost U.S. drone dominance.

Public Notice expected today: The FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau and Office of Engineering and Technology are expected to issue a Public Notice seeking comment on regulatory and spectrum changes to strengthen U.S. drone technology, manufacturing, and operations; Carr visited Anduril Industries’ Texas test site on Tuesday with CEO Brian Schmipf and COO Matt Grimm to view drone and counter-drone demonstrations and tied the effort to President Trump‘s strategy for American drone dominance.
Background and related items: Other items in the briefing include Nexstar‘s claim that a judge created a ‘governance vacuum’ with the TEGNA TRO, Scripps closing an $83 million sale of its ABC Indianapolis station to Circle City Broadcasting, an Amazon Leo–Delta Airlines Wi‑Fi partnership, and reported concerns from Sen. Blumenthal about Big Tech data center risk concealment.

Mar 31, 2026

‘LaPolitics’: Who will replace Foster Campbell on the PSC?

Term-limited Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell will leave the PSC seat and multiple candidates are contesting to replace him; party primaries are set for May 16.

Main announcement: Foster Campbell’s open PSC seat in north Louisiana is being contested by Caddo Parish Commissioner John Atkins (Republican), James Green (Democratic State Central Committee-endorsed), Austin Lawson (Democrat), and Aiden Joyner (Republican, college student); the article details their policy positions on electricity rates, data center approvals, and infrastructure and notes endorsements (e.g., U.S. Sen. John Kennedy backing Atkins).
Background and details: Candidates outline concrete proposals such as establishing an official consumer advocate, tightening oversight of the PSC’s public entities program, reducing guaranteed utility returns on investment, and creating a percentage-of-income payment plan; the piece references the Meta data center project and Entergy’s PSC deal, cites a district vote split (district voted 64% for Donald Trump, 46% for John Bel Edwards) and emphasizes the timeline of the May 16 primary.

Mar 30, 2026

Data center deals could leave ratepayers ‘holding the bag,’ advocate warns

Logan Burke spoke Monday to the Press Club of Baton Rouge warning about risks from rapid data center growth.

Main announcement/action:Logan Burke addressed the Press Club of Baton Rouge on Monday (report dated March 30, 2026), saying Louisiana’s data center boom raises the question “Who pays if the tech giants don’t stick around?” and warning that local ratepayers could be left responsible if major tech tenants depart.
Background and context: The piece is published on Business Report (Insider paywalled). The article frames the issue as an advocate’s warning; it provides no specific monetary figures, deal sizes, or named tech tenants in the excerpt provided and reads as coverage of a speech/commentary rather than a transactional announcement.

Mar 29, 2026

AI's Arrival Complicates Big Tech Climate Goals, and Some Worry it's Locking in More Fossil Fuels

The Associated Press reports that major tech companies including Google and Microsoft are acknowledging difficulty meeting their 2030 carbon-removal/carbon-neutral goals as rapid AI-driven data-center growth increases electricity demand.

Main point: Major tech firms are increasingly relying on natural gas and other fossil-fuel generation to power rapidly expanding AI data centers, putting earlier 2030 emissions/removal targets under strain; examples include two new natural gas plants in Wisconsin for a Microsoft data center, three natural gas plants planned to serve a Meta data center in rural Louisiana, and Google buying power from a natural gas plant at the Archer Daniels Midland facility in Decatur, Illinois with carbon capture and storage. The article reports companies’ emissions rose (Google ~50%, Amazon ~33%, Microsoft >23%, Meta >60%) and that data centers used ~4.6% of U.S. electricity in 2024 and that share could nearly triple by 2028.
Background/details: Analysts and groups cited include Wood Mackenzie, Clean Energy Buyers Association, International Energy Agency, Union of Concerned Scientists, World Resources Institute, Rhodium Group, and Uptime Institute; the piece notes natural gas accounted for >40% of electricity powering U.S. data centers in 2024 and coal supplied ~30% globally, that a backlog of grid interconnection approvals and proposed changes to renewable-credit accounting could complicate clean-energy claims, and that federal policy changes (cancellations of grants/permits and the ending of certain tax credits in July) under the Trump administration are affecting renewable deployment.

Mar 28, 2026

Entergy, Meta deepen Louisiana data centre partnership under revised power pact

Entergy Corp. and Meta Platforms Inc. announced an expanded agreement to support Meta’s hyperscale AI-focused data centre in northeast Louisiana.

Expanded agreement details: Under the revised agreement Entergy will support the hyperscale AI-focused data centre and develop new power plants to meet Meta’s energy requirements; Entergy said Louisiana customers are expected to save about $2 billion over the next 20 years, in addition to $650 million in benefits previously committed when it began construction of turbine generation facilities at the site in 2025.
Background and implementation: The deal follows Entergy’s “Fair Share Plus” framework (large customers pay full cost of services); Meta earlier announced a $10 billion investment in 2024 to build the AI-focused data centre in the region, and Entergy shares rose more than 4 per cent in morning trading after the announcement.

Mar 27, 2026

Entergy, Meta strike deal that could deliver $2.6B in customer savings

Entergy Louisiana has reached an agreement with Meta to deliver roughly $2 billion in customer savings over 20 years and to advance Meta’s Hyperion data center project.

Main announcement: Entergy Louisiana and Meta agreed to an arrangement expected to deliver roughly $2 billion in customer savings over 20 years, building on a prior agreement to bring total projected customer benefits to about $2.65 billion; Meta will cover the full cost of new energy infrastructure required to support its hyperscale data center so existing customers are not burdened.
Background and details: The partnership includes funding for bill assistance programs, energy efficiency initiatives and expanded renewable energy development; Meta earlier secured a $27 billion financing partnership with Blue Owl Capital to build the $10 billion Hyperion project in Richland Parish, with Blue Owl holding the majority stake and Meta retaining about 20% equity.

Mar 20, 2026

How to Build an Affordable Energy Future

NRDC will develop and release a series of papers called the Build Clean Agenda focused on three areas of reform to speed clean energy and infrastructure deployment.

Main action: NRDC will publish a multi-paper Build Clean Agenda to modernize laws and permitting, level the playing field for clean energy, and design projects that benefit communities; it calls for U.S. renewable energy production to roughly quadruple, and for at least tripling grid capacity over the next 25 years, and highlights the Western Solar Plan identifying 31 million acres for siting solar on public lands.
Background and specifics: The piece documents concrete barriers and numbers: the oil, gas, and coal industries receive $34 billion in annual federal subsidies; a 2025 partisan tax bill risks an estimated half a trillion dollars of private clean-energy investment and may raise consumer fuel/energy costs $78–$192 per year; it cites projects like the Grain Belt Express facing multi-year delays and supports targeted reforms such as expanding the “One Federal Decision” approach and giving a federal lead (e.g., FERC) authority to coordinate interstate transmission permitting where uniform standards are met.

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