About 100 people crowded into a Jena community center to confront Entergy representatives over a proposed 500-kilovolt transmission line, a flashpoint in Louisiana Landowners Fight Entergy’s 500kV Line for Meta’s $50B Data Center. The high-voltage project is designed to deliver power to Meta’s Hyperion data center currently under construction near Rayville.
What Changed
Entergy is advancing its West Fork Creek to Boeuf 500kV project to supply massive amounts of electricity to Meta’s facility. While Entergy has fixed the beginning and ending substations for the line, the exact route in between remains unfinalized. The proposed path stretches through Avoyelles, Rapides, LaSalle, Caldwell, and Richland parishes, featuring a right of way approximately 250 feet wide.
In response to the routing uncertainty and potential property impacts, the Louisiana Landowners Coalition filed a formal petition opposing the project with the Louisiana Public Service Commission on August 27. Surveyors have already appeared on private properties, prompting heightened anxiety among local residents.
Context and Project Background
Meta describes the Hyperion facility as a $50 billion investment expected to deliver 5 gigawatts of compute capacity. To support this and other burgeoning power demands, Entergy Louisiana has outlined broader infrastructure plans involving roughly 240 miles of new 500-kilovolt transmission lines connecting south Louisiana to north Louisiana and Arkansas. These grid enhancements run alongside plans for seven new natural-gas-fueled power plants totaling more than 5,200 megawatts.
Entergy began supporting studies, surveys, soil borings, and easement acquisitions for the transmission corridor. Construction is slated to start in 2028, with the line scheduled to enter commercial service in late 2031.
Sector Impact and Business Implications
The clash underscores the immense infrastructure strain and land-use conflicts driven by the artificial intelligence and data center boom. Entergy stated that Meta has signed a 20-year contract for the current project, and that regular Louisiana retail customers would not pay for the transmission line during that initial period.
Furthermore, Entergy noted it is legally obligated to negotiate in good faith with every landowner, arguing that while the line is primarily intended to serve Meta’s data center, it will also address broader regional infrastructure needs as additional data centers scale up across Louisiana.
Who May Be Affected
Landowners along the proposed corridor face direct impacts. The route would cross about 2.5 miles and roughly 76 acres of Catahoula Lake in LaSalle and Rapides parishes. Additionally, the route may cross land belonging to the Jena Band of Choctaw Indians, though the tribe has not taken a formal position on the project.
Individual property owners have voiced strong concerns. Dustin McAnn, who founded the Louisiana Landowners Coalition, first learned about the route when surveyors appeared on his property. Jimmy Nugent stated the proposed route would cut straight through his 160 acres of hardwood timber. Danielle LeBouef raised specific concerns about pesticides and Entergy work crews affecting her sheep and property.
Risks and Limitations
The corridor planning faces multiple friction points. At the time of the Jena community meeting, at least 70% of projected affected landowners had signed survey agreements, while roughly 30% had not.
Entergy plans to send initial offer letters to landowners in November, with negotiations continuing through June 2027. Final offer letters are scheduled to go out between December 2026 and September 2027.
Legal and regulatory hurdles are also mounting. State Rep. Mike Johnson stated that Louisiana law requires a project to be proven public-use and necessary before expropriation can proceed, and that landowner inconvenience must factor into that legal determination. Larry Hand added that Entergy should consider all other options before settling on a final path.
What to Watch Next
The Louisiana Public Service Commission is expected to vote on the transmission project in December. The outcome of this vote, alongside ongoing landowner negotiations and potential legal challenges regarding eminent domain and environmental disruption, will dictate whether Entergy can proceed with its tentative 2028 construction timeline.