Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook and other social networking and messaging platforms, plans to spend $10 billion to build artificial intelligence data centers in Richland Parish, Louisiana, state officials announced on 4 of December The company chose a team from Turner Construction Co., DPR Construction and MA Mortenson Co. to build the Northeast Louisiana campus, according to contractors.
The mile-long facility would occupy 4 million square feet of former farmland, according to Louisiana Economic Development (LED). The facility would be the largest of Meta’s data centers.
The project team plans to source labor and materials locally. Ben Kaplan, Turner’s CEO, said in a statement that Meta and contractors will hold information fairs for interested contractors and workers in early 2025.
Work on the site begins this month and the project is expected to be completed by 2030.
“Louisiana has actively positioned itself as a hub for AI innovation, with plans to support startups, grow a skilled workforce and shape future policy,” said Secretary Susan Bourgeois of LED, in a statement.
State officials hope Meta will take advantage of a state incentive program that provides tax breaks for data center equipment. And the Louisiana Community and Technical College System has committed funding to Delta Community College, located near the future Meta site, to help it develop programs and expand capacity, including its construction trades program, to help meet the manpower needs of the project.
Power and Infrastructure
Meta has agreed to contribute more than $200 million for local road and water infrastructure improvements, and electric utility Entergy Louisiana LLC has applied to the Louisiana Public Service Commission to build a generating plant with three gas turbines with a combined capacity of 2,260 MW. , two of which would be located next to the Meta campus in Holly Ridge, La.
The generators would be capable of 30% hydrogen co-commissioning and have the ability to support 100% hydrogen cooking and incorporate carbon capture and sequestration with future upgrades.
“By supporting this transformative investment, we are not only providing the energy needed today, but also building the infrastructure that will support a brighter and more sustainable future for all of Louisiana,” said Phillip May, president and CEO of ‘Entergy Louisiana, in a statement.
Entergy’s plan also calls for the construction of eight substations and a 500 kV transmission line, as well as equipment upgrades at a substation near Sterlington, La.
A company representative could not immediately share details about the project’s procurement, but Entergy expects the new generators to come online between 2028 and 2029.
Meta and Entergy are also looking into the possibility of nuclear power as a future power supply option, according to the company. This could include small modular reactors or upgrades to expand the output of existing nuclear plants.
