Meta will not have to disclose energy use and job creation numbers for its $50 billion data center in Louisiana. At a Wednesday meeting, Louisiana’s utility regulatory commission declined to force Meta to produce documents as part of regulatory review of Entergy Louisiana’s proposal to build seven new gas power plants to serve Meta’s data center.
Consumer advocacy groups are criticizing what they view as a lack of transparency in the review process. The Louisiana Public Service Commission’s decision comes one day after reporting from Gulf States Newsroom revealed that an Entergy executive wrote an amendment on a previous approval of three gas power plants.
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Public records demonstrate that Larry Hand, Entergy’s vice president of regulatory affairs wrote a motion put forward by Commissioner Foster Campbell during the approval of three power plants to serve Meta last August. Hand also wrote drafts of a motion that appeared in approval of a transmission line tied to a Hyundai facility, Gulf States Newsroom reported.
The national data center boom has faced opposition over the use of non-disclosure agreements and public perception that projects appear suddenly without properly informing residents in neighboring communities. Backlash against data centers has become a potent political issue. And in Louisiana, Meta’s Hyperion data center in Richland Parish has spurred the state’s utility company to pursue a fast-tracked approval for at least 10 gas power plants across the state.
What did the commission decide?
Entergy’s plans to power Meta’s data center have faced legal challenges from consumer protection groups and environmentalists. The Alliance for Affordable Energy and Union of Concerned Scientists are among the groups to contest Entergy’s plan before the Louisiana Public Service Commission, where the groups are represented by lawyers at the environmental law nonprofit Earthjustice.
They argue that residents across the state could end up footing the bill for costs associated with the new power plants. In July, an administrative law judge overseeing the proceeding granted Earthjustice’s request to subpoena Meta for internal information quantifying how much energy the data center will consume and how many permanent jobs it’s expected to create.
Chief Administrative Law Judge Melanie Verzwyvelt said the “data is relevant to the Commission’s public interest determination in this matter.”
Meta challenged that subpoena, and asked the elected commissioners to overrule the judge’s decision. The commissioners voted 3-1 on Wednesday, in favor of overruling the judge, allowing Meta to withhold the information.
“Today’s decision is another blow to Louisianans who deserve a transparent regulatory process before they’re saddled with higher utility bills and seven new gas plants for a project that may not produce promised jobs and economic development,” said Susan Stevens Miller, a senior attorney for Earthjustice, in a press release.
What has Meta said about job creation?
According to its website, Meta’s hyperion data center will require 5 gigawatts of power, which is equivalent to 3 to 5 million homes. Meta also said it is creating 7,500 construction jobs and 1,000 permanent operational jobs once the project is complete. That’s $50 million in overall investment for each permanent job, according to a Straight Arrow analysis of Meta’s numbers.
Meta has also pledged to pay for all of the power it will need and associated grid upgrades. But Earthjustice and its clients have argued that the details of the agreement between Entergy and Meta’s subsidiaries leave existing ratepayers open to unnecessary risk.
The commission is expected to make a final decision on the seven new power plants later this year, after approving three last year. Entergy has also proposed two additional power plants not officially tied to the Meta project. Last week, the company paused plans to purchase an existing power plant in Texas.
With power plants and some renewable energy investments, Entergy is looking to add 14 gigawatts of new capacity to the grid. That exceeds the current peak demand on Entergy Louisiana’s grid met by existing resources, which is less than 11 gigawatts.
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