Baton Rouge utility costs remain unsettled after Landry-Entergy pledge

A new pledge from Gov. Jeff Landry and Entergy says large data centers should pay the electricity-generation and grid-infrastructure costs their projects require. For Baton Rouge-area customers, however, the pledge is not the same as a binding Louisiana utility rule, and important cost questions remain before state regulators.

The pledge was announced July 23, 2026, as part of the White House’s voluntary Ratepayer Protection Pledge. The White House says large data-center operators—not ordinary households and businesses—should fund the generation and infrastructure needed to serve their facilities.

Why Baton Rouge customers are connected

The data centers discussed in the pledge are not located in Baton Rouge. Construction is underway on Meta’s facility in Richland Parish, while WBRZ reported construction activity involving Hut 8 in West Feliciana Parish. The local connection is Entergy Louisiana’s utility system, which serves customers in East Baton Rouge Parish and other parts of the state.

Decisions about new power plants, transmission lines, grid upgrades and utility rates can affect customers across the system. That makes the Louisiana Public Service Commission’s review important for Baton Rouge residents even though neither data center is located in the city.

What the pledge says—and what it does not do

The White House describes the pledge as a commitment for data-center operators to cover the generation and infrastructure costs their projects require. The Louisiana governor’s announcement about Meta’s Richland Parish project also describes commitments involving project-related costs, renewable-energy investments and support for a low-income ratepayer assistance program.

Those commitments should not be treated as a completed statewide rate order. The pledge is voluntary, and it does not automatically determine how every future cost will be assigned if a project changes, scales back or fails to use its planned capacity.

The unresolved Cottonwood question

A July 13 report from Axios New Orleans cited a consultant estimate that the average Entergy Louisiana customer could see an increase of $8 or more if Entergy’s proposed purchase of the Cottonwood power plant proceeds. That figure is not an adopted rate increase. The purchase remained subject to regulatory review, and Entergy was still expected to formally respond to the consultant’s report.

Axios reported that Entergy-provided figures show 10 planned power plants could provide about 7,500 megawatts for Meta’s projects. Entergy and Meta disputed the consultant’s conclusions, saying the Cottonwood plant would serve multiple customers and that Entergy had planned to acquire it before Meta announced its Louisiana expansion.

What regulators are still deciding

The Louisiana Public Service Commission is handling a proceeding on private-use electrical networks intended to enable generation for new large loads. The commission also has an active process involving nonbinding guidelines for large-load customers. Those matters include questions about new generation, grid responsibility and the risk that other customers could be left with costs if expected demand does not materialize.

Louisiana intervenors represented by Earthjustice have argued that the pledge lacks sufficient enforceability and transparency. Their concerns center on whether public commitments will become enforceable tariffs, approved agreements or other documents that regulators and residents can review.

For Baton Rouge Entergy customers, the practical takeaway is that the pledge may address some project-specific connection and infrastructure costs, but it does not settle every possible future expense. The next meaningful signals will come from LPSC orders, docket filings, approved tariffs, utility agreements and decisions on proposed generation projects.

Sources

• WBRZ report on the Landry-Entergy pledge
• White House Ratepayer Protection Pledge announcement
• Louisiana Public Service Commission proceedings
• Axios New Orleans report on Cottonwood
• Earthjustice response from Louisiana intervenors