Detailed Narrative
Fair Share Plus pledge and the Meta North Louisiana ESA
Entergy formalized its data-center framework as the Fair Share Plus pledge, aligned with the White House Rate Payer Protection Pledge, ensuring data centers cover incremental costs plus a portion of existing customers' fixed costs — a source of the estimated $7B of customer benefits. In late March it signed a new Meta ESA for a North Louisiana data center carrying ~$2B of Fair Share value (part of the $7B). Meta also committed, over 20 years, $140M to energy-efficiency programs and $60M to the Power to Care program, which Entergy Louisiana will match to $120M — a 5x annual increase over 2025 levels. The associated assets (7 combined-cycle units, transmission and battery storage) are to be paid for by Meta via tariff or other contributions while all customers get reliability, resilience and lower fuel-cost benefits.
Capital plan expansion and financing
The forward 4-year capital plan rose to $57B, up $14B, driven primarily by the 7 CCCTs and battery storage from the Meta agreement; the LPSC filing totals more than $15B with ~$14B inside the 4-year horizon, and transmission, renewables and the River Bend nuclear upgrade are not yet included pending financing decisions. Equity for the 4-year plan is now $6.6B (low end of the 10-15% target), with $1.9B already contracted (~30%) and $4.7B to be sourced in late 2027 through 2029; the plan also assumes $3B of parent hybrids. Management stresses proactive ATM/forward funding and constructive mechanisms (AFUDC recovery, forward mechanisms, pension funding) keep equity at 10-15% of the plan without structural change.
Customer growth pipeline beyond Meta
Beyond Meta, Entergy signed ESAs totaling over 1,000 MW YTD across steel, petrochemicals and other Gulf South industries and all operating companies, with many projects under 20 MW and non-data-center loads probability-weighted (not booked at 100%). Even after all signed agreements including Meta, the data-center pipeline outside the plan remains 7-12 GW; Meta moved through that pipeline and was backfilled by fresh interest. Hyperscale data centers only enter the plan once an ESA is signed, and are included at minimum-bill levels for revenue certainty.
Renewables, generation and operational excellence
Entergy has active RFPs for more than 1,600 MW of renewables and storage and over 4,500 MW in various stages of negotiation from prior RFPs in Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi, with roughly two-thirds of the negotiated megawatts to be owned (about half not yet in the plan). Orange County Advanced Power Station achieved first fire and is expected fully online in late summer 2026, and Entergy Texas issued a February RFP for combined-cycle capacity. Power delivery identified more than $30M in capital savings on the Commodore-to-Churchill 230 kV project via a design improvement applicable to future large transmission projects.
Regulatory activity across jurisdictions
Entergy Arkansas filed a base rate case in late February requesting a $45M change (less than 2%; residential impact under 1%), including an optional time-of-use rate and a 50% customer-charge discount for LIHEAP-qualifying low-income households, and elected to resume its formula rate plan after resolution. Entergy Mississippi filed its annual formula rate plan with no change requested and updated its interim facilities rate adjustment; Entergy Arkansas filed its first Generating Arkansas Jobs Act rider. Mississippi passed legislation authorizing securitization of Winter Storm Fern costs (~$200M). Louisiana's request falls under the new Louisiana Lightning Initiative with a targeted December B&E meeting decision.
New nuclear posture
Management views new nuclear as needed in the long term (not reaching ~2050 without it) and the Meta agreement moves exploration forward, including a study referencing AP-1000 technology. Entergy states it is largely technology-agnostic — comfortable with the AP-1000 given its completed design and familiarity — but the central concern is construction-cost uncertainty and risk-sharing. Management repeatedly stressed it will not enter any agreement that creates existential balance-sheet risk, noting its balance sheet is not big enough to cover the whole construction risk alone; it will share ideas at Investor Day on managing cost and risk.