Louisiana approves three new gas plants to power Meta's Hyperion
The Louisiana Public Service Commission voted 4–1 to let Entergy build three gas plants (≈2.2 GW) and a $550M transmission line for Meta's Richland Parish AI campus. Meta covers costs for 15 years; afterwards they fall to ratepayers.
Meta's Hyperion campus in Richland Parish is sized at roughly 2,500 MW. To serve it, Entergy Louisiana sought approval for three combined-cycle gas plants — two in Richland Parish (online late 2028) and one at its Waterford site in St. Charles Parish (end of 2029) — plus authority to procure up to 1,500 MW of solar.
Entergy asked the commission to vote immediately rather than wait for the administrative law judge's recommendation; ratepayer advocates wanted the vote delayed to October. Commissioner Davante Lewis cast the only no vote, saying he was "still left struggling with some fundamental questions".
Meta will subsidise the plants' cost for the first 15 years. Critics note that the plants' 30-plus-year lives extend well past that window, and that the campus will lock in new fossil capacity on a grid Meta's own accounting treats as 100% renewable through certificates.
Sources
- 1.Entergy Louisiana gains regulatory approval for massive Meta power projectLouisiana Illuminator · Aug 20, 2025
- 2.Louisiana moves ahead with contentious gas power plants for Meta data centerStraight Arrow News · Aug 21, 2025