Issuu

FALL 2026

SPECIAL REPORT

THE DATA CENTER SURGE

Performance Contractors founder and Lifetime Achievement Award honoree Art Favre built an industry giant by empowering others, acting on principle and giving back with purpose.

POWER IN 20 26

MOTION

l o u is ia n a

enearrgdsy aw

Louisiana’s energy economy is changing— and these leaders are helping direct it.

Federally Registered Small Business (SBA CERT ID P2662144) Baton Rouge Business Report — LA Top 100 Private Companies 2023, 2024

CONTENTS

One recipient, Tickfaw-based a recurring challenge: a pile of carbon utilization aligns with a third-party validated sales packWaste to Energy Systems, is using sawdust. Cornerstone’s long-term vision. age that gives customers reliable its $200,000 award to move a “We’d always had a pile of The company wants the park to data.” gasification technology beyond the sawdust sitting around and he has become an integrated, sustainable FUEL’s support has extended research-and-development phase. always been a bit of an environindustrial hub that advances green beyond the financial award. It also The system converts biomass into mentalist, so he started thinking energy innovation while strengthconnected Waste to Energy with heat and electricity using a single of ways to put it to use,” Mahoney ening domestic manufacturing StartUP Northshore in CovingMelara piece of equipment. says. supply chains. ton and Scale Up! Louisiana forPublisher: Julio Associate Publisher: Erin Pou But the funding also comes Woods built a small gasification The 800-acre industrial park assistance with business developwith an additional objective: system in 2010 and gradually inment. EDITORIALhas 180 available acres, excess FUEL wants Waste to Energy to creased its size over the years that utility capacity and access to rail “We realized there was some Executive Editor: Penny Font determine whether the technology followed. Mahoney now hopes the room for improvement on the Editor: Samand Barneswater. can produce hydrogen from the FUEL award will help move the “We plugCheryl in nicely with their business side, and that we needed Contributing Photographers: Gerber, Don Kadair, Leroy Tademy resulting gas. technology out of R&D and into a model,” Byrd says. “Our ammonia to shift our thinking and how we ADVERTISING “They want us to see if we can real-world application. plant provides an abundant source approached things,” Mahoney says. Senior Consultant & Assistant Manager: Emma Walker strip hydrogen out of the gas,” says Waste to Energy has purchased of pure CO2,” he says, “and we alMarketing Consultant/Custom Alissa Mahoney, the company’s a syngas analyzer, enabling the CONNECTING INNOVATION Multimediaready utilize some of Publishing: it in our urea Judith LaDousa, Manny Fajardo,manufacturing.” Liz Bowen, Kelly Lewis chief operating officer. “It’s a better company to optimize its processes. and melamine WITH INDUSTRY Sales Intern: Blair LeBlancwas happy to see carbon option than pulling hydrogen Initial testing indicates that the Perhaps the clearest illustration “FUEL Ashleighalready Ward happening in out of air or water, and we’re not system has successfully stripped of FUEL’s connective role can beMarketing Director: utilization Digital Operations Devyn MacDonald using any natural resources in the hydrogen from the gas, and the found at Cornerstone Energy Park their Manager: backyard.” Manager:isErin Beene in Waggaman, where an estab- Partner SuccessFUEL now connecting process.” company is seeking third-party Louisiana’s energy is changing— and Digital Operations Coordinator:with Isabelladevelopers Toncrey lished industrial site could provide Cornerstone of The idea originated more than economy a validation of the results. these leaderss are helping direct it. Meet ourtechnology, 2026 Londyn White emerging technologies with the Content Creator: late-stage technologies seeking decade ago with Mahoney’ father, “With any new Louisiana Energy Awards honorees and finalists. Emily Hebert assets and feedstocks needed to Content Strategist: to commercialize their work and Albany Woodworks founder convincing people to change the Coordinator: Donovan move toward commercialization.Sales & Operations needing access Meredith to carbon or other Richard Woods. way they think about things is the Jacques Byrd, vice president of industrial feedstocks. His sawmill reclaims heart pine biggest challenge,” Mahoney says. site development at CornerstoneSTUDIO E “We’re also the primary and cypress and remills the wood “This funding has significantly IN THIS ISSUE NEWS Corporate Communications Strategist: Mark Chemical Co., which owns the Director andrecipients of FUEL funding for Lorando into a variety of products. helped us go down that path. We Emily Hebert Is the energy prepared hope to walk Thefrom productivity paradoxpark, says FUEL’s emphasis on Content Strategist: a study into utilizing carbon to The operation also market generated this with 7 67away

POWER IN

DON KADAIR

MOTION

for what’s about to happen?

LAUNCH

While the ROI can be difficult to track, ignoring AI is not an option.

73 Bye-bye billions

DMC

Two major Louisiana projects representing $7 billion in planned investment were abandoned in June amid the broader controversy over carbon capture and storage.

8 ICYMI 14 The Big Picture

Meta’s $50 billion data center in Richland Parish is Louisiana’s first—and largest—entrant in the state’s new wave of AI infrastructure. Dubbed “Manhattan-sized,” it hints at the sheer scale of what is taking shape in rural northeast Louisiana.

23 Executive Profile

Todd Hancock ‘listens, learns and leads’ as he guides Sasol’s U.S. operations.

55 Data Centers

Louisiana’s data center boom is accelerating fast, led by Meta’s $50 billion project in Richland Parish. With more than $81.6 billion in projects under construction statewide, the race is on to capture the economic gains while managing the workforce and infrastructure strain that comes with them.

WELDING SUPPLIES SAFETY EQUIPMENT INDUSTRIAL TOOLS

FOCUS

79 An unintended purpose

CREATIVE SERVICES

85 The long game for Louisiana energy

Creative Services Manager: Ellie Gray Art Director: Hoa Vu Senior Graphic Designers: Melinda Gonzalez Galjour, Sidney Rosso Graphic Designers: Aniya Dunn, Lea Showers

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is living way beyond its shelf life as inventories drop to near record lows.

FUEL’s five-year strategy aims to turn the state’s existing advantages into new technologies, companies and career opportunities.

94 My Toughest Challenge

Jace Dugas taught himself—then others—about additive manufacturing

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IN THIS ISSUE

Is the energy market prepared for what’s about to happen?

uckle up. Data uckle up.LNG Data centers, centers, LNG producers, steel and producers,manufacsteel and ammonia ammonia manufacturers—and, oh yes, oh yes, a $100 billionturers—and, spaceport—are a $100 billion spaceport—are converging upon the state in converging state inA virtually theupon samethe timeline. virtually the same timeline. A local economist points out that localone economist out that just of thesepoints mega projects just oneequal of these mega projects would a year’ s worth of would equal a year’s worth statewide investment more of than a statewide decade ago.investment more than a decade Theseago. are truly uncharted Theseand arefew truly uncharted waters, would be bold waters, and fewthe would enough to say state be hasbold the enough capacity to say thetostate hasitthe current handle all. current to exist handle it all. Very realcapacity concerns across Veryenergy real concerns exist across the and industrial specthe energy industrial spectrum that itand might be too much, trum that itgiven mightthe beincompretoo much, too quickly too quickly given the incomprehensible level of investment and hensible level investment its impacts onof energy, power,and its impacts on and energy, power, infrastructure manpower. infrastructure andholds manpower. Still, one thing true: EnStill, one obviously thing holds true: Energy is, and will remain, andofobviously remain, aergy vitalis,part the state’will s economic a vital part the powers state’s economic engine as it of fuels, and engine asan it fuels, powers and supports industrial market supports an industrial market that continues to throttle up. that continues up. And perhapstonothrottle other state perhapspossesses no otherthe state in And the country in the country possesses the necessary resilience and capacity necessary and capacity for growthresilience as Louisiana. Years forrollercoaster growth as Louisiana. Years of ups and downs, of rollercoaster ups andfloods, downs, hurricane gut punches,

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cally too risky. In similar fashion, SunGas In similar canceled fashion, SunGas Renewables its multibilRenewablesBeaver canceled itsBiofuels multibillion-dollar Lake lion-dollar Lake in Biofuels project nearBeaver Alexandria June. project near Alexandria in June.s Meanwhile, Gov. Jeff Landry’ Meanwhile, Jeff Landry’ October 2025 Gov. executive order s Octoberthe 2025 executive order banning review and accepbanning the review andunderacceptance of new Class VI tance ofcarbon new Class VI underground injection well perground carbon injection permit applications remains well in place. mitbest, applications remains in place. At these circumstances spell At best, these future circumstances out a tenuous for CCS.spell outEven a tenuous for CCS. so, we future find success stories. Evenupso,onwepage find73. success stories. Catch Catch up on page 73. NORTH LOUISIANA NORTH LOUISIANA POWERS UP POWERS PerhapsUP no region has transPerhaps noasregion formed itself swiftlyhas astransnorth formed itself as swiftly north Louisiana. Largely flyingasoff the Louisiana.radar Largely industrial for flying years, off thethe industrialShreveport radar for years, the Monroe, and AlexMonroe, Shreveport Alexandria areas have eachand landed andria areas each landedin colossal data have center facilities colossal data center facilities in in the last couple of years that are the last stages coupleofofconstruction. years that are in varying varying stages of local construction. Irrespective concerns Irrespective of localwater concerns about energy strains, short-

aboutand energy watercaused shortages otherstrains, disruptions ages andmega othercomplexes, disruptionsthere caused by these by these megabecomplexes, there will certainly supply chain and will certainly be supply chain and workforce stresses as they simulworkforceramp stresses they simultaneously up as construction taneously up construction and seek toramp develop a permanent and seek topipeline. develop a permanent workforce workforce pipeline. Shreveport economic leaders Shreveport economic point to a robust supply leaders chain point to aincluding robust supply chain network companies network including companies such as Fibrebond, which already such as Fibrebond, which already designs and builds complex designs and buildsand complex modular electrical mechanmodular electrical andcenters, mechanical buildings for data ical buildings for data centers, utility companies and industrial utility companies and industrial markets. markets. And in Alexandria, economic And in Alexandria, economic developers note a populace in dire developers a populace in dire need of jobsnote in the wake of paper needclosures of jobs in thedownturns wake of paper mill and in milltimber closures and downturns in the industry. theTake timber industry. a deeper dive in our Takereport a deeper in ourdata special on dive Louisiana special report Louisiana data centers on pageon55. centers on page 55. Sam Barnes is the editor of 10/12 Sam Barnes is theReach editorhim of 10/12 Industry Report. at Industry Report. Reach him at editor@1012industryreport.com. THE BIG ANNOUNCEMENT: SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell speaks during an event in August announcing a deal to build a new SpaceX spaceport in Louisiana.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS/GERALD HERBERT

SAM BARNES

hurricane gut punches, volatile market dynamicsfloods, and a volatile market dynamics and a host of unforeseen challenges host given of unforeseen have the statechallenges a strong have givenbackbone, the state aand strong industrial perhaps backbone, and that perhaps aindustrial dash of overconfidence we a dash of overconfidence can endure and rise abovethat anywe can endure and rise above any challenge. challenge. For some of those stories of For some those stories of resilience andofgrowth, read our resilience growth,on read our cover storyand beginning page cover story beginning on page 25 celebrating key players in 25 celebrating keywho players in the energy sector are being the energy who areEnergy being honored at sector the Louisiana honored at the Louisiana Energy Awards. Awards. A DAMNING RIPPLE EFFECT? A DAMNING RIPPLE EFFECT? Air Products’ shocking anAir Products’ nouncement thatshocking it wouldanpull nouncement it billion would pull the plug on itsthat $4.5 Louthe plug on its $4.5 billion Louisiana Clean Energy Complex in isiana Clean Energy in Ascension Parish hasComplex given pause Ascension Parish hasspace. given pause to some in the CCS toThe somecompany in the CCS had space. spent years Thepublic company had spent facing pushback fromyears facing public from residents and pushback government leaders residents andplans, government over its CCS only toleaders decide over the its CCS plans, only to decide that investment was economithat the was economically too investment risky.

THE BIG ANNOUNCEMENT: SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell speaks during an event in August announcing a deal to build a new SpaceX spaceport in Louisiana.

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

LAUNCH Here comes the windfall

8 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

IC H A E L F E

taxing districts such as fire disage, primarily due to new regulations tricts and recreation districts. imposed after hurricanes Rita and Fewell calls it a Laura. “They changed the build“once-in-a-generation opporing standards so that all housing tunity,” touting the need to has to be 18 feet above ground,” improve roads, drainage and he adds. “That makes living there other essential infrastructure, unattractive and more expensive.” emergency response, law The impact will be felt in enforcement and public safety, neighboring Calcasieu Parish, as O C hurricane protection and disaster most people who work in Cameron’s Cameron Parish Police Jury preparedness, water, sewer and LNG facilities spend their dollars President Michael Fewell community services, among other there. “They carpool to get down things. there,” he adds. “They’re ferrying to “We must avoid building local government these LNG sites … there are dozens of buses around temporary revenue,” he adds. “The goal going down there every day.” should be to make long-term investments that Fewell says while ITEP has played an imcontinue benefiting Cameron Parish after the portant role in attracting billions of dollars in industrial tax base changes.” industrial investment to Louisiana and Cameron LAIA’s Rock says Cameron Parish’s system Parish, local governments have little influence of roads will undoubtedly be a top priority. over the exemptions even though they’ve provid“Every highway down there is two lanes with ed the roads, emergency services and infrastrucdeep ditches on either side, so they’re looking at ture supporting the developments. four-laning Hwy. 27 (a vital route),” he adds. “I believe incentives should produce a fair Additionally, the parish plans to rock-reinand measurable return for the local commuforce the shoreline and the section of the Calcanity,” Fewell says. “Ultimately, I will judge the sieu Ship Channel that runs through the parish program’s (ITEP) success by whether these to improve shoreline protection. investments improve life for the people who live At 4,800 residents, the number of people who here.” will benefit from the surge is low. The parish continues to suffer from a severe housing shortU

ne of Louisiana’s smallest parishes is about to see a very big influx of money. Cameron Parish, home to just 4,800 residents, is projected to collect roughly $4 billion in taxes over the next decade, driven largely by LNG facilities reaching the end of their industrial tax exemptions. Tax collections in the parish are expected to nearly double in just the next year, going from $75 million in 2026 to $138 million in 2027 as the 10-year Industrial Tax Exemption Program contracts begin to reach their end. “Cameron LNG’s about to roll off and some of the initial Cheniere LNG investments are going to roll off as well,” says Jim Rock, executive director of the Lake Area Industry Alliance in Lake Charles. “It’s going to add up quickly.” LNG facilities alone are expected to contribute $3.1 billion, reaching $4 billion when combined with annual collections from residents and other local businesses. “The revenue will not arrive all at once,” says Michael Fewell, president of the Cameron Parish Police Jury, in an emailed statement. “It will increase in stages as individual exemptions expire, and property is placed on the taxable rolls.” The money will be distributed across multiple parish entities, including the parish police jury, school board, sheriff ’s department and special

A flare burns at Venture Global in Cameron Parish.

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESS/MARTHA IRVINE

BRIEFING

LAUNCH: BRIEFING

CALDWELL PARISH

2033: Louisiana Green Fuels Renewable Diesel Plant Estimated investment: $2 billion

SHARING THE WEALTH

ASCENSION PARISH

Besides Cameron Parish, other communities in Louisiana stand to reap their own tax benefits, although the expiring Industrial Ad Valorem Tax Exemption Program, or ITEP, contracts there aren’t typically concentrated in the LNG space. The following parishes are expected to benefit the most from a plethora of $1 billion-plus projects reaching their contract expiration dates through 2036.

2026: CF Industries Nitrogen new operating unit Estimated investment: $1.3 billion 2028: REG Geismar plant expansion Estimated investment: $1.2 billion 2029: Methanex Fortier Inc, Methanex G3 Estimated investment: $1.6 billion 2032: Air Products Blue Energy, Blue Energy Clean Energy Complex Estimated investment: $3.6 billion 2032: Shell Chemical LP, Jaguar Project Estimated investment: $1.4 billion 2034: Ascension Clean Energy, Viper Project Estimated investment: $7.5 billion 2035: CF Industries Nitrogen, Project Emerald Estimated investment: $2 billion

IBERVILLE PARISH 2032: Shintech Louisiana new PVC facility Estimated investment: $1.2 billion 2033: PCS Nitrogen Fertilizer LP expansion Estimated investment: $1.6 billion

CALCASIEU PARISH

2029: Sasol USA Corp., LCCP cracker Estimated investment: $7.6 billion 2029: LACC, Axiall-Lotte ethane cracker Estimated investment: $1.8 billion

ST. JAMES PARISH

ISTOCK.COM-PETERHERMESFURIAN

ST. CHARLES PARISH

2032: Equilon Enterprises Peri project Estimated investment: $1.3 billion

SOURCE: LOUISIANA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

2032: St. Charles Clean Fuels Train 1 Estimated investment: $1.9 billion 2033: St. Charles Clean Fuels Train 2 Estimated investment: $1.4 billion

EXPIRATION DATES The Louisiana Industrial Ad Valorem Tax Exemption Program, or ITEP, offered an 80% property tax abatement for up to 10 years on new capital investments by qualifying manufacturers. Here are the expiration dates of those agreements for six LNG facilities in Cameron Parish.

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2027 Sabine Pass Liquefaction Venture Global CP2 Monkey Island

2028

2029

2030

2031

Cameron LNG

Sabine Pass LNG

Venture Global CP2 Davis

2032

2033 Venture Global Calcasieu Pass

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 9

LAUNCH: LAUNCH:ICYMI ICYMI

125,000 ACRES 195 SQUARE MILES Size of the planned Pecan Island site

2029

$92,600

Number of launch pads planned at full buildout, with two per complex

Projected average annual salary for direct jobs, 192% above the Vermilion Parish average wage.

2027

3,000

Number of launch complexes planned at full buildout

Target for the first launch

$27.5 billion

Estimated tax incentives SpaceX may receive as part of its $100 billion Starbase Louisiana facility in Vermilion Parish. About $23.8 billion arrives in the form of a 25-year property tax exemption. Once completed, the $100 billion facility could generate roughly $1.3 billion in annual property taxes, but the agreement calls for SpaceX to make an initial $25 million annual payment shared by local governments.

Estimated direct jobs expected over the next decade.

D PRESS/GERA

Year construction is planned to begin

THE EXEMPTION EQUATION

Estimated indirect jobs expected over the next decade.

THE ASSOCIATE

8,100

SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell, left, speaks with Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, center, and Louisiana Economic Development Secretary Susan Bourgeois during the August event in Abbeville with SpaceX announcing a deal to build a new spaceport in Louisiana.

THE VISION

WHY VERMILION PARISH?

FUELING THE CADENCE

Starship is the centerpiece of SpaceX’s next chapter: a fully reusable launch system the company hopes to fly at a scale that could support far more satellite missions—and, eventually, a sustained presence on the Moon and human missions to Mars.

Louisiana Economic Development cites natural gas, room to grow and a Gulf Coast position that permits a range of launch trajectories.

Starbase Louisiana’s plans include a propellant production facility and a storage farm at each of its five proposed launch complexes. The farms would hold the liquid methane and liquid oxygen Starship needs and deliver them to the pads through pumps and piping. For an operation built around frequent launches, producing and storing propellants on site would make fuel supply a core part of the campus’s industrial infrastructure.

10 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

INDUSTRIAL WORKFORCE MEETS AEROSPACE. Louisiana Economic Development expects the project to draw on skills and businesses developed through Louisiana’s energy and industrial sectors.

ALEX G PEREZ/AGPFOTO/SIPA USA VIA THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SpaceX plans to build its largest launch site on the coast of Vermilion Parish, with 10 launch pads envisioned at full buildout and a first flight targeted for as soon as 2029. The company sees the $100 billion Starbase Louisiana as part of its path to the Moon and, eventually, Mars. Here’s the scale of the plan—and what still has to happen before the rockets fly.

Total investment SpaceX announced in Starbase Louisiana, its planned launch campus in Vermilion Parish.

LD HERBERT

FROM MARSH TO MARS?

ISTOCK.COM/WALTER CICCHETTI

$100B

SNAPSHOT

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10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 11

LAUNCH: ICYMI

$5.8B Hyundai Steel’s planned investment in Ascension Parish

ISTOCKCOM-PAOLA GIANNONI

12 NDAs

The deal,

unsealed

Ascension Parish has opened the once-confidential file on Hyundai Steel’s investment. Here’s what you need to know. Documents released in September after the confidentiality period expired shed new light on the project’s tax arrangement, infrastructure commitments, investment schedule and the nondisclosure agreements signed while parish and state officials were pursuing the deal. The project documents detail commitments tied to roads, rail, water infrastructure and a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement.

Eight Ascension Parish government officials signed nondisclosure agreements with Hyundai Steel in August 2024. Four additional parish employees signed NDAs with Louisiana Economic Development in January 2025.

“We signed these agreements so Ascension Parish could compete for high-paying jobs and generational economic opportunity for our residents.” —ASCENSION PARISH PRESIDENT CLINT COINTMENT, noting the confidentiality agreements did not replace the public processes required for governmental action

The $12 million tax deal Hyundai-POSCO Louisiana Steel is scheduled to make $3 million in annual PILOT payments for four years, beginning July 1. The agreement runs through Dec. 31, 2029, unless changed or terminated earlier. Where will it go?

$1 MILLION A YEAR

$232.7M

$1 MILLION A YEAR

$60.6 MILLION

Ascension Parish government

Ascension Parish Sheriff’s Office

$1 MILLION A YEAR

Ascension Parish School Board 12 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

Amount identified in the documents for major transportation funding tied to the RiverPlex MegaPark. Here’s the breakdown: General obligation bond funding for Phase 1 of the Energy Transition Parkway

$6.1 MILLION

State general fund nonrecurring revenue for the parkway

$132.5 MILLION

General obligation bond funding for rail improvements

$13.5 MILLION

State general fund nonrecurring revenue for rail improvements

$20 MILLION

Louisiana Economic Development Initiatives Fund money for Phase 2 of the Energy Transition Parkway

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LAUNCH: ICYMI

ISTOCK.COM/HALBERGMAN

B AT O N R O U G E | A L E X A N D R I A | H A M M O N D | N E W O R L E A N S

ROADS, RAIL AND WATER

The agreements spell out who is responsible for infrastructure serving Hyundai and the broader RiverPlex MegaPark. Among the commitments:

Guidance Beyond the Numbers. A DV I S O R Y

A new road: Ascension Parish would design and build roughly 7,000 linear feet of roadway serving Hyundai and other RiverPlex tenants.

AUDIT + ASSURANCE

More water capacity: The parish would improve and expand potable water infrastructure to provide up to 156,000 gallons per day.

B U S I N E S S VA L U AT I O N S

Transportation upgrades: Ascension Parish and the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development would divide responsibilities for the Energy Transition Parkway, a La. 1 overpass and rail improvements.

O U T S O U R C E D AC C O U N T I N G

$1.19B Cumulative investment Hyundai is expected to reach by the end of 2026. The figure is part of the investment schedule included in the cooperative endeavor agreement between Hyundai and Ascension Parish.

TA X P L A N N I N G + P R E PA R AT I O N W E A LT H M A N AG E M E N T

1,452 ISTOCK.COM/CIMMERIAN

Full-time workers Hyundai anticipates employing once operations ramp up. The projected annual payroll: at least $138.6 million.

htbcpa.com

KEEPING THE AGREEMENT The cooperative endeavor agreement includes default provisions for both sides. Hyundai could be found in default for failing to complete the project by the required date, missing certain commitments or losing rights under related state agreements. Ascension Parish could be in default if it fails to meet its contractual commitments. In most cases, the agreement gives either side an opportunity to fix a default before the other party can terminate its obligations. 1012industryreport.com

P R O U D LY S E R V I N G LOUISIANA SINCE 1924

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 13

LAUNCH: THE BIG PICTURE

META’S

MASSIVE

BET

14 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

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LAUNCH: LAUNCH: THE BIG PICTURE EVENTS

GOING BIG IN RICHLAND Meta’s $50 billion data center in Richland Parish is Louisiana’s first—and largest—entrant in the state’s new wave of AI infrastructure. Under construction on more than 2,250 acres, the project was quickly dubbed “Manhattan-sized,” a comparison that hints at the sheer scale of what is taking shape in rural northeast Louisiana. For now, much of the economic activity is tied to construction, but the numbers are already showing how a project of this magnitude can ripple beyond the job site. THE NUMBERS MOVE FIRST Richland Parish is already seeing a sharp rise in sales tax collections. In the first quarter of 2026, the School Board collected $19.65 million, up from $2.36 million a year earlier, while Police Jury collections rose from $1.57 million to $13.1 million. Regional leaders caution that not every increase can be directly attributed to Meta.

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A STATEWIDE BUILDING BOOM Meta is hardly building alone. Louisiana’s four AI data center projects—Meta, Amazon, Delta Forge 1 and Hut 8—are all under construction, representing more than $81.6 billion in combined investment. At peak construction, Louisiana Economic Development projects roughly 12,000 workers will be building the four facilities simultaneously, creating new opportunities—and new pressures—across the state. BUILDING THE WORKFORCE, TOO Louisiana will ultimately need to fill about 7,000 permanent data center jobs, prompting a parallel workforce push. Meta is backing a $115 million workforce academy at Associated Builders and Contractors Pelican Chapter’s Baton Rouge Training Center, one of four pilot markets nationally. The free program requires no prior experience and guarantees graduates a job offer with a Meta contractor. Read more: For a broader look at the impact of data centers in Louisiana, read our special report, beginning on page 55.

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 15

16 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

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LAUNCH: ICYMI THEY SAID IT

“The result could be precisely the opposite of what policymakers intend: less refining; fewer total gallons of diesel, gasoline and jet fuel; tighter inventories; and higher prices—effectively trading a diesel problem for a broader fuel supply problem.” WILL GREEN, president and CEO, Louisiana Association of Business & Industry, of Gov. Jeff Landry’s call for a 90-day ban on U.S. diesel exports to to boost domestic supply and bring down prices

ISTOCK.COM/ONURDONGEL

ISTOCK.COM/ART WAGER

ISTOCK.COM/GUGURAT

BY THE NUMBERS

$15 MILLION ABOUT MOVING THE RUNDOWN: 1. IT’S MORE NATURAL GAS

Black Bayou Energy Hub

Lafayette-based Black Bayou Energy Hub has announced a $1.6 billion investment to expand its Lafayette headquarters and build out natural gas infrastructure in Cameron Parish. The project stretches across Acadiana and southwest Louisiana. Here are three more things to know.

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Black Bayou Energy Hub is developing infrastructure designed to increase the movement, storage and delivery of natural gas across the Gulf Coast. The project would add capacity and connectivity to Louisiana’s existing energy network as demand grows across the region. 2. A SALT DOME IS AT THE CENTER OF IT The company was established to develop natural gas infrastructure around the Black Bayou salt dome in southwest Louisiana. The Cameron Parish investment

represents the buildout of that strategy, while the company also expands its Lafayette headquarters. 3. THE BIGGEST JOBS IMPACT COMES DURING CONSTRUCTION Across the two sites, the project is expected to create 23 direct jobs and retain five existing positions. Louisiana Economic Development estimates another 35 indirect jobs, bringing the potential permanent employment impact to 58 jobs across the Southwest and Acadiana regions. At peak construction, however, the project is expected to support more than 1,000 workers.

The amount Louisiana Innovation—a division of Louisiana Economic Development—has secured to connect small and medium-sized manufacturers with advanced technologies including AI, robotics, automation, advanced materials and biotechnology. The initiative will focus on key industries such as energy, agribusiness, aerospace and defense, life sciences, and logistics. The investment includes $1.5 million annually for five years from the National Institute of Standards and Technology to expand Louisiana Innovation Labs, with matching contributions bringing the total investment to more than $15 million.

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 17

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LAUNCH: ICYMI

ISTOCK.COM/GARSYA

Louisiana is putting another $50 million to work turning promising properties into project-ready sites. The second round of Louisiana Economic Development’s FastSites program opens Oct. 1, funding infrastructure and site improvements aimed at helping communities compete for new investment. Eligible projects must be ready to move quickly, with construction able to begin within nine months, matching funds secured and a repayment plan in place. “FastSites is changing how Louisiana prepares for economic development by investing before infrastructure becomes a barrier,” says LED Chief Economic Competitiveness Officer Ileana Ledet said in a prepared statement. Projects that receive the funding will be announced in early 2027.

RARE EARTHS PROJECT LINES UP BACKING

ISTOCK.COM/NATALYA KOSAREVICH

$277 million | Port of Vinton | Up to $750 million in potential EXIM support

ROUNDUP

EXPANSION MODE

From nuclear technology in New Orleans to aerospace manufacturing in Acadiana, several Louisiana projects are moving from plans to buildout. Here’s just a glimpse of what’s taking shape.

APPLIED ATOMICS PLANTS ITS FLAG $8.2 million | New Orleans | 41 jobs Applied Atomics plans to establish its headquarters and technical operations center in the Bywater, bringing 41 direct jobs with an average annual salary of $121,000. The 18,500-square-foot facility will pack in corporate offices, fabrication and assembly space, a control room, training center and an outdoor Plexiplant demonstration system. One thing it won’t do: generate nuclear power or handle radioactive materials. The headquarters build-out is expected to wrap by the end of 2026, with the training system coming online in 2027. 1012industryreport.com

GEISMAR GETS MORE WAREHOUSE SPACE 200,000 square feet | Geismar | Construction starts Q1 2027 Ratcliff Development and JRE Capital are adding a 200,000-square-foot Class A distribution facility at the nearly 200-acre Magnolia Ridge Logistics Park. It’s the first phase of a larger multi-building development aimed at the petrochemical, logistics, warehousing and industrial service sectors. The tilt-wall, rear-load facility is scheduled to begin construction in first-quarter 2027. Ratcliff Construction Co. will serve as general contractor, Powers Brown Architecture will handle design, and Lee & Associates will market and lease the property.

Aclara Resources’ Project Dynamo is lining up significant government support before dirt starts moving. The U.S. Export-Import Bank has issued a letter of interest for up to $750 million to support the planned $277 million heavy rare earths processing plant at the Port of Vinton. The project also has Louisiana tax incentives and Department of Energy funding for AI technology designed to optimize processing. The plant could break ground as early as late 2026 and begin operating by the end of 2027, producing materials used in EVs, defense, robotics and AI data-center power equipment. The project is also drawing scrutiny, with environmental groups raising concerns about Louisiana’s expedited permitting process.

CAPITALIZING ON SPACEX $25.5 million | Carencro | 129 jobs Coastal Machine & Supply is making room for more aerospace and defense work. The company plans to expand its Carencro facility by 120,000 square feet and add production lines for aerospace and defense components, a $25.5 million investment expected to create 129 permanent jobs. The company hopes to capitalize on growing demand from SpaceX. Construction is expected to begin this year, with the first phase scheduled for completion before August 2027. The project will receive state and local tax incentives. 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 19

ASK THE

EXPERT

What is CCS? Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is a process that captures carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, transports the CO2, and injects it deep underground for permanent storage. The CO2 is stored in secure rock formations located far below drinking water sources, often in the same types of formations that have held oil and gas for millions of years. CCS is a proven, regulated, and closely monitored process that reduces emissions while supporting essential industries, economic growth, and long-term sustainability goals.

Why is it needed today? CCS is widely recognized as a critical tool for reducing emissions while meeting growing demand for lower-carbon products such as steel, cement, and fertilizer. CCS allows these industries to reduce emissions while continuing to provide products essential for everyday life. By balancing environmental goals with economic needs, CCS helps industries remain competitive and meet increasing market expectations for lower-carbon products. It enables essential industries that are pillars of the Louisiana economy to remain competitive while meeting the demand for lowercarbon products across global markets

How is the process monitored and regulated?

CCS projects operate under strict regulations designed to protect drinking water, human health, and the environment. The Underground Injection Control (UIC) Program, established under the Safe Drinking Water Act, governs underground injection activities. In 2023, Louisiana received authority from the EPA to regulate Class VI CCS wells after demonstrating standards as protective as federal requirements. Projects must complete detailed geologic studies, address potential leakage pathways, meet rigorous well construction standards, and conduct extensive monitoring and reporting before, during, and after injection to ensure safe operations and groundwater protection.

CARBON

CODY TODD Underground Injection Control Lead - ExxonMobil Cody serves as ExxonMobil’s Underground Injection Control (UIC) Lead, leading CCS

What about potential impacts to property rights and groundwater safety?

permitting efforts across the company. A recognized CCS leader, he has helped shape policy, industry standards, and regulatory frameworks.

CCS projects must comply with state laws governing surface and subsurface property rights, including compensation where applicable. Protecting groundwater is a core regulatory requirement. CO2 is injected far below drinking water aquifers and separated by thick, impermeable rock layers. Injection wells are built with multiple layers of steel and cement to prevent leaks and isolate the stored CO2. Ongoing monitoring helps verify safety throughout the life of the project. Similar underground injection activities have safely operated for decades.

P.O. BOX 241 70821 | 888.275.6420 | WWW.ABOUTLACCS.COM

Drawing on experience as both a regulator and industry professional, Cody provides a valuable perspective on CCS development.

LAUNCH: EVENTS

Louisiana’s Next Energy Frontiers ISTOCKCOM-EVGENY GROMOV

ata centers are rising. SpaceX is preparing to build. And Louisiana’s next industrial chapter is taking shape around a familiar asset: energy. As AI infrastructure moves from announcements to construction and SpaceX prepares to begin building its Vermilion Parish spaceport by the end of 2027, Louisiana is stepping into industries with enormous demands for power, infrastructure and technical expertise. The first SpaceX launch is targeted for as soon as 2029. A new 10/12 Industry Report video podcast, “Louisiana’s Next Energy Frontiers,” will explore what this shift means for the state—and how capabilities built over decades in oil, gas, petrochemicals and heavy industry are becoming relevant to a new generation of businesses.

Entergy Louisiana President and CEO Phillip May will be a panelist alongside other executives and experts, connecting the growth of AI data centers, renewed interest in nuclear generation, potential lithium development and the energy requirements of SpaceX’s Louisiana operations. Together, these developments put Louisiana at the intersection of some of the biggest questions facing industry: Where will the

power come from? Who will build the infrastructure? And which companies have the expertise to turn emerging technologies into operating businesses? The discussion will examine how Louisiana can meet this growing demand for electricity, from expanding generation and transmission to the roles of natural gas, nuclear power and battery storage in maintaining a reliable grid. It will also explore how Louisiana’s drilling, subsurface

and chemical-processing expertise could support lithium development in the Smackover Formation—and how its industrial capabilities could help supply the power, propellant and services an aerospace industry requires. For Louisiana executives, the implications reach beyond the headline projects. New industries could open markets for existing manufacturers, contractors, engineers and service providers while changing the competition for workers, infrastructure and energy. The program will trace how those pieces fit together as Louisiana begins putting its traditional strengths to work in unfamiliar territory. SCAN TO REGISTER

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LAUNCH: EXECUTIVE PROFILE

Todd Hancock ‘listens, learns and leads’ as he guides Sasol’s U.S. operations

BY SAM BARNES

1012industryreport.com

Share some pivotal moments in your career. A supervisor of mine at Georgia Gulf Corp., earlier in my career, was an excellent mentor and leader and just a genuinely nice man. I’ve learned that good leadership is about being visible and present. When people are heard and they’re respected, they’re more invested in what’s going on and in the team’s success. What have been your toughest challenges, and what did you learn from them? There have been a ton of them in operations. In our region, we’ve had Hurricane Laura, a blizzard and a pandemic … and then the big conclusion of our U.S. megaproject. They all revealed to me the dedication of our team members … how they come together during those challenges to adapt and solve problems. What have been your most significant accomplishments? Over the last 18 months, we’ve initiated a large-scale effort to re-engage with the workforce, talk to them and listen. We’ve already had some success in improving the culture and morale at the site, backed up by some great metrics in safety and production. It all stems from Sasol’s “One Team, One Standard” program that we’re putting into place. We’re going to listen, we’re going to learn and then we’ll lead. That’s the practice we’ve been applying across our operations. What does that look like in practice? We’ve encouraged people to share their concerns with us. Just addressing some of those environmental factors—such as a work process or form that doesn’t add value to their jobs—has enabled

LEROY TADEMY

rowing up in Meadville, Mississippi, Todd Hancock was fascinated by how things worked. But it was a “really cool slideshow” about the University of Southern Mississippi’s polymer science program that set his career in motion. He had already studied hydraulics, pneumatics and CNC machines in a high school industrial technology class when a USM representative visited. “A guy came by to introduce us to the polymer program at the Hattiesburg campus, and he showed us the coolest stuff,” Hancock says. “I wanted to be a part of that.” Hancock earned a bachelor’s degree in polymer science from USM and began his industrial career as a research chemist in 1997. Over nearly three decades in the petrochemical industry, he has built expertise in research and development, production planning, operations and supply chain strategy. He also earned bachelor’s degrees in business administration from the University of Phoenix and economics from the University of Missouri. Now Sasol’s vice president of U.S. Operations, Hancock oversees the company’s manufacturing sites in Lake Charles and Tucson, Arizona, including operations, maintenance, quality control and technical services. He previously led Sasol’s Lake Charles Chemical Complex and held several other senior operations and production roles. Along the way, Hancock has earned a reputation for championing innovation, continuous improvement and collaborative workplace cultures. He recently spoke with 10/12 Industry Report about about his leadership, Sasol’s progress and the opportunities ahead.

us to alleviate a lot of the frustrations around those things. We’ve also addressed some safety concerns. We’re trying to engineer different ways to reduce the risk and exposure to employees. It all boils down to improved communication. What do you view as Sasol’s biggest challenges ahead? The world is very small. What happens in one hemisphere happens to another in a short period of time, so we must be extremely reliable and globally competitive, today and into the future. That means looking for opportunities. When those opportunities do show up, they must be staffed by great people. Sasol made a large investment here years ago, and they’re really

committed to the Lake Charles complex and our region. It’s important to have that corporate commitment. What most excites you about your current role? We’re fortunate to be on the Gulf Coast, where a robust industrial infrastructure already exists. We have some world-class assets, such as land and other resources that not all the other companies have available to them, so we’re looking to explore more growth opportunities for the Lake Charles complex. But it’s also about the growing number of new opportunities in the petrochemical and energy sectors in general. The future is very bright for all of us in Louisiana these days. 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 23

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9/24/26 10:43 AM

COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS

COVER STORY

POWER IN

MOTION

Louisiana’s energy economy is changing— and these leaders are helping direct it.

Ryan Kerrigan, site manager of ExxonMobil’s Baton Rouge Polymers North facility. The company is being honored with the Community Impact Award.

1012industryreport.com

ouisiana doesn’t simply produce energy. It builds the companies, infrastructure and talent that keep the nation’s energy economy

moving. That work is easy to reduce to big numbers: billions of dollars invested, thousands of jobs promised, megawatts of new demand. But projects of that scale do not happen through capital alone. They depend on executives willing to make consequential bets, contractors and engineers that can deliver, utilities capable of supporting growth and communities prepared to live alongside industry. Those are the people and organizations at the center of the 2026 Louisiana Energy Awards. Presented by 10/12 Industry Report, the statewide program recognizes achievement across Louisiana’s energy and industrial sectors. This year’s honorees and finalists include major corporations, Louisiana-grown businesses, veteran executives and emerging leaders. Their work spans steel, chemical manufacturing, LNG, power generation, construction, engineering and industrial services. Together, they offer a useful

snapshot of where Louisiana industry stands. Large capital projects are again changing the scale of what is possible in the state. At the same time, surging electricity needs, workforce constraints and global competition are forcing companies to think differently about how—and how quickly—they operate. Smaller firms are taking on increasingly complex work, while established companies are investing in the next generation of leadership. And in the communities where industry operates, expectations extend well beyond jobs and tax revenue. This year’s awards recognize both the headline-making investments and the less visible work behind them: decades spent building a company, teams assembled to execute difficult projects, leaders stepping into larger roles and sustained efforts to strengthen the communities around industrial operations. The following pages introduce the honorees and finalists whose decisions are shaping Louisiana’s energy economy now. Their stories show what industrial growth looks like in practice—and who makes it possible.

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 25

COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS

LEADINGBY LISTENING

Art Favre built an industry giant by empowering others, acting on principle and giving back with purpose. BY SAM BARNES

RT FAVRE IS rarely the loudest voice in the room, but he’s almost always the one who elevates the conversation. He has a knack for listening, learning and absorbing information, then providing meaningful insights that take discussions to the next level. That innate ability, along with a foundation of “doing the right thing, no matter how hard it might be,” enabled Favre to create, sustain and grow Performance Contractors into one of the nation’s largest and most prolific contractors. For most of his early years, Favre lived with his family on a small cattle ranch north of Gulfport, Mississippi, where they also raised corn, hay and pecans. It was backbreaking work that came with valuable lessons. “I think the hottest I’ve been in my life was in the middle of August picking corn by hand and throwing it in a trailer,” Favre says. His father, a veteran who had served in the Pacific Theater during World War II, was the “drill sergeant” of the family. “He made sure that we knew what was important in life,” he adds. “I learned early that you need to have a strong foundation and to do the right thing … even when it’s not necessarily the easiest thing to do.” A little good fortune would eventually map out his destiny. 26 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

He’d always had an interest in construction, so as a senior in high school he began looking for universities in Mississippi with a construction program, but there was no such thing. He ultimately chose architecture, the closest thing he could find to the career, and enrolled at LSU. There was just one problem: He had no artistic ability. “There were other people who would run circles around me in their ability to freehand sketch things, and I had to do everything with a straight edge and ruler. To say the least, it put me at a competitive disadvantage.” Nonetheless, his timing couldn’t have been better. At the end of his freshman year, LSU launched the Construction Management Department in the College of Environmental Design and he immediately changed majors. He later graduated in the department’s first class, along with other soon-tobe industrial construction giants such as Eddie Rispone at ISC and Pepper Rutland at MMR Group. One of his early teachers was Roland Toups, former CEO of Turner Industries. “It was hands down one of the best decisions I’ve ever made in my life,” he says. In another case of perfect timing, he graduated not long after the passage of Right to Work

Legislation in Louisiana, which gave birth to a thriving merit shop movement in the construction industry, followed later by the creation of Associated Builders and Contractors’ Pelican Chapter in Baton Rouge. That gave Favre the confidence he needed to create Performance Contractors in 1979. “Starting Performance was a big risk, because we were betting the ranch that we were going to be success-

ful,” he says. “Thankfully, there were some plant managers willing to take a chance and give us some opportunities.” They worked only on small projects in the beginning. “The first few years were extremely difficult,” he adds, “both financially and from the pressure and stress that it put on our families. When

you’re in a small company, you’re trying to be everything for everyone and you only have a handful of people to make that happen.” In the years that followed, Performance’s ability to adapt to wildly fluctuating market conditions and political environments enabled it to survive and thrive. Then, in another leap of faith, the contractor expanded its geographic footprint, opening their first out of state office in Mobile, followed by others in Houston, Lake Charles and Corpus Christi. Today, they’re working in 26 states. Kevin Courville, current president & CEO of Performance, says much of the company’s success can be traced to Favre’s unique management style. Courville has worked with Favre for decades, joining Performance after graduating from LSU in 1983. For most of those years, they’ve also been fishing buddies, as they share the same love for blue marlin sport fishing. “I think the only way you organically grow a company from just three people to 17,000-plus is by trusting people and empowering them to do their jobs,” Courville says. “He set the company up to operate in a spread 1012industryreport.com

COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS

DON KADAIR

Performance Contractors founder and Lifetime Achievement Award honoree Art Favre built an industry giant by empowering others, activing on principle and giving back with purpose.

offense, so everyone is going out and running parallel as opposed to stacked.” As such, he trusts his managers to make decisions rather than having to wade through multiple layers of bureaucracy. “You have to hire the right people and then trust them to make it happen,” Courville says. “That’s what we’ve done throughout our company in every department and in every regional office we’ve opened. “When you empower people, that style of management is contagious.” Favre, now chairman of the board, also credits their success to a logical approach to problem solving. “I’ve learned that very few people have good common sense,” he adds. “I think being able to look at a situation logically is one of my strongest attributes.” He’s most proud, perhaps, of Performance Contractor’s selection as ABC’s National Contractor of the Year in 2023, an award given by his peers in the construction industry. “I saw it as a recognition of all the people who built Performance into what it is today,” he says.

GIVING BACK STRATEGICALLY Undoubtedly, though, it’s Favre’s passion for giving that’s had the greatest impact on Baton Rouge. Higher education has been a particular passion. In 2024, he presented a $15 million donation to LSU for the design and construction of a new $107 million standalone Construction & Advanced Manufacturing Building, enabling work on the project to begin earlier than planned. The building is scheduled to break ground in 2027. Favre also leads the fundraising effort for the project, having helped raise some $45 million of 1012industryreport.com

Facing page: Art Favre was in the legendary first graduating class of the LSU Construction Management Program, along with ISC’s Eddie Rispone and MMR Group’s Pepper Rutland, with fellow Lifetime Achievement Award honoree Roland Toups as one of his early instructors. He was absent the day this photo was taken. Below that, the company’s first ABC National Excellence in Construction Eagle in 1997, for the Dow Mayflower Project. This page, clockwise: At a company crawfish boil, with then-Congressman Garret Graves in 2019 celebrating four decades in business, and the Marathon Refinery Expansion in 2009

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 27

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COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS The Phillips 66 Lake Charles Gasoline Isomerization Project. At right: Art Favre on the construction site. Below, from left: new signage in 1997, philanthropy for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, at the Associated Builders & Contractors Contractor of the Year Event in 2023 and sharing the story of The Wharf in Orange Beach, Alabama

the remaining $60 million needed in private donations. Equally impactful, though, has been his philanthropic work with Pennington Biomedical Research Center and Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center, among others. Jonas Fontenot, president & CEO of Mary Bird Perkins, says Favre has an extraordinary talent “for listening, digesting information, reflecting and then being very thoughtful and intentional about his thoughts and opinions.” Fontenot got to know Favre through his service on the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center board of directors, where Favre served as vice chairman, chairman and immediate past chair, before transitioning to the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Foundation board. “Art’s the one who leans back in his chair, listens to the dialogue and then once you think the conversation is getting to a point of consensus, he’ll weigh in with some 1012industryreport.com

unbelievably insightful thoughts that elevate the discussion.” Favre has a particular passion for creativity and innovation. Through an endowment eight years ago, he established an Innovation Fund that awards grants each year “to help further innovative ideas from our doctors and staff, as well as advance patient care or the mission of the center,” Fontenot says. Favre has also been a critical supporter of the hospital’s entry into an emerging area of radiation oncology—Adaptive Radiation Therapy (aptly called ART). Three years ago, he made a sizeable donation to the cancer center that enabled it to purchase a new adaptive radiation therapy machine—a “gamechanger” in regional cancer treatment. Today, it remains the only machine of its type in the Gulf South. “He saw what it was capable of, what it would mean for

patients and their outcomes, and he was willing to lean in with the anchor gift, which ultimately inspired others to also participate in the campaign,” Fontenot says. The program has since provided state-of-the-art care to thousands of patients. “Art doesn’t make decisions lightly,” he adds. “Once he decides to lean in, he’s all in.”

A LEGACY OF MAKING THINGS BETTER Today, Favre’s family remains heavily involved in the company. His son, Scott, and daughter, Shelley, currently serve on Performance’s board of directors, and his oldest grandson recently began working for the company. Meanwhile, his younger grandson (currently in high school) is also

considering a career at Performance, and his oldest granddaughter would like to one day manage The Wharf, an entertainment, retail and residential complex Favre owns in Orange Beach, Ala. As for his legacy, Favre hopes to be remembered for his ability to change the lives of others. “If we can help make someone’s life a little simpler or give them an opportunity that they wouldn’t have had otherwise, that’s meaningful to me,” Favre says. “And I think that’s one of the reasons God put me on this Earth, quite honestly. “There’s a responsibility that comes with success. I’d like to look back and know that I’ve helped other people and communities … and that I left things a little better than I found them.” 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 29

COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS

DON KADAIR

Brandon Maxell leads public and government affairs at ExxonMobil Baton Rouge

30 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

1012industryreport.com

COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS

MORE THAN A

NEIGHBOR

ExxonMobil turns local needs into action through workforce development, healthcare and hands-on service. BY SAM BARNES

or ExxonMobil, community engagement isn’t simply a matter of sponsoring a local festival or sitting on the boards of a few select civic groups. It’s equal parts strategic and impactful, as the company aggressively and collectively seeks to identify the needs of the city and state in which it resides, then takes action. The Baton Rouge complex is somewhat unique in the ExxonMobil universe—and the industrial universe for that matter— given its expansive location within the boundaries of a major city that also happens to be the state capital. In many ways, that only serves to amplify its impact as it provides the ability to more easily rally city, state and civic leaders around a cause. Externally, ExxonMobil regularly engages with civic organizations and focus groups to learn of community needs, then internally ensures that their employees and contractors know what they support. “Community is everything for us,” says Rory Denicola, a public and government affairs advisor at ExxonMobil. “It’s about being involved with the schools and community colleges for education and workforce development initiatives, but it’s also about planting trees and cleaning up the streets or sponsoring a free health clinic. When we say community impact, we mean the entire gamut of everything. “Our plant managers are very enthusiastic about it,” she adds. “I’ve been here 27 years, and I’ve

1012industryreport.com

When Ryan Kerrigan, site manager of the Baton Rouge Polymers North facility, with Pipeline Mid-Atlantic/Southeast Area Manager Patrice Aron, learned one of the biggest roadblocks to employment was the expense of childcare, ExxonMobil spearheaded a Childhood Scholarship Program.

never seen this level of engagement. They’re on the front lines volunteering and they’re actively looking for ways they can help. That encourages our employees to do the same.” Ryan Kerrigan, site manager of the Baton Rouge Polymers North facility, says one of his passions is workforce development, so when he learned that one of the biggest roadblocks to employment was the expense of childcare, ExxonMobil spearheaded a Childhood Scholarship Program. Through the program, ExxonMobil funds a family’s childcare for up to five years should a participant prove that they’re in school, have a need and are progressing toward graduation. The program has expanded significantly since its inception. “It alleviates a long-term challenge that we have in the community—how do get people off government subsidies

and give them that next rung in the ladder to take a step forward,” Kerrigan says. “That involves everyone—state and local government, the Greater Baton Rouge Industry Alliance, Capital Area United Way etc.—and aligns perfectly with ExxonMobil’s priorities.” ExxonMobil was also a critical partner in the creation of the North Baton Rouge Industrial Training Initiative in 2012, a successful, tuition-free, workforce development program launched in partnership with Baton Rouge Community College and local industrial contractors. Perhaps most atypical has been ExxonMobil’s participation in the Love Impact Coalition, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to providing free medical, dental and vision care to underserved communities. After

learning of the coalition through a focus group, ExxonMobil became a premier sponsor in 2025 and 2026, and is already planning to sponsor the one-day health care clinic again in 2027. On the day of the clinic, ExxonMobil employees volunteer to help and the company’s GOAL (Global Organization for the Advancement of Latinos) Employee Resource Group provides interpreters for non-English speaking residents. Some 700 to 800 citizens participated during the last clinic, held in August. “It’s not something that you think ExxonMobil would be doing in the health space,” Denicola says, “but it’s what our community needed and where we could step in and help.” She asked State Rep. Vanessa 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 31

Louisiana Industry, Moving Forward Together. For more than 55 years, the Greater Baton Rouge Industry Alliance has brought industry together around shared needs in workforce development, safety, public affairs and operational excellence. Today, our network connects 80 industrial manufacturing sites across the Greater Baton Rouge and New Orleans regions, along with the contractors, suppliers and partners that support them.

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COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS

LaFleur in Baton Rouge to assist with the effort. “I was in the hallway during the legislative session last year and Rory approached me about supporting the coalition in our budget priorities,” LaFleur says. “There are a couple of people that you can’t say ‘no’ to—Rory and Donna Collins-Lewis (executive director and founder of the coalition).” LaFleur even participated in this year’s event and assisted in getting the word out. “I’m their ambassador and cheerleader,” she says. “If there’s a funding resource that’s out there that I can influence, I’m making the introductions. I’m letting them see what they do and what their impact is so that the buy-in is easier for those who want to support us financially. “ExxonMobil understands that their role is not just to take from a community; it’s about giving back,” she adds. “They have the resources to do something like this, and they do it.”

EXPANDING RURAL REACH ExxonMobil’s workforce development push isn’t confined to Baton Rouge. Last year, the company launched a STEM workshop at SOWELA Technical Community College’s Oakdale campus for high school educators. Some 35 high school teachers participated in the program, held in conjunction with Rice University’s Tapia Center, a STEM educational outreach initiative. The teachers, in turn, created lesson plans and activities that they could take back to their schools. The following year, ExxonMobil provided funding for the renovation of the Oakdale campus

1012industryreport.com

ExxonMobil regularly engages with civic organizations and focus groups to learn of community needs, then internally ensures that their employees and contractors know what they support. Below: ExxonMobil in Baton Rouge through the years.

to accommodate a new multi-purpose room. “It’s nice to see a company taking an interest in a small rural campus,” says Neil Aspinwall, chancellor of SOWELA’s main campus in Lake Charles. “Oakdale is the smallest of our four campuses, and it means a great deal for that community.” Oakdale enrolls from 150 to 200 students in LPN, business, welding and industrial electrical and instrumentation curriculums. Under the leadership of campus director Magan Soileau, they also teach adult education and offer a correctional program where welding is taught to inmates. “ExxonMobil paid the first and second years for the STEM camp, including the teacher and equipment stipends,” Aspinwall says. “It was very successful, so we did it again this past year.” He says SOWELA wouldn’t

exist without the help of the industry it serves. The college’s enrollment grew 20 percent in 2025 due primarily to growth in the petrochemical and LNG markets. “The core of what we do is workforce development,” Aspinwall says, “and one of the reasons we’re so successful is because of our partnerships with the business and industry markets. It’s a tremendous asset and strategically important.” ExxonMobil also participates in SOWELA’s Program Advisory Committee, comprised primarily of industry representatives who review curriculum and graduate performance, then make recommendations for modifications, changes or additions to the curriculum. “We train people and put them to work,” Aspinwall says. “That’s what we do, so if we don’t listen, we won’t be successful.”

GONE VIRAL In a way, community engagement has gone viral among ExxonMobil’s 5,000 or so Baton Rouge area workers. “We have employees who want to do it all and we don’t say no,” Denicola says. “We encourage and celebrate that. We’ve been here 117 years, and we want to be here another 117, so making our community better is in everyone’s interest.” For Kerrigan, it boils down to truly understanding what they’re providing to the community and finding ways to strengthen that relationship over time. “After all, our employees live here, too,” he says. “I’ll go to the grocery store after work in my work FRPs and it’s no big deal. We’re all an important and integral part of the community, and we want to keep it that way.”

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 33

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COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS

DEALS WITHREACH Three agreements could reshape production, infrastructure and employment well beyond their project sites.

HYUNDAI-POSCO HYUNDAI MOTOR GROUP’S groundbreaking decision to invest $5.8 billion in a new ultra-low carbon steel manufacturing facility in Ascension Parish was unprecedented, as it paved the way for a fully integrated domestic supply chain to support Hyundai’s U.S. auto manufacturing operations. To seal the deal, the state offered Hyundai a competitive incentives package including a $100 million performance-based grant for infrastructure improvements. Also pivotal was Entergy Louisiana’s agreement to supply the facility’s power needs. Other infrastructure upgrades – road, rail, electric and pipelines – will enable the full development of the 17,000-acre RiverPlex MegaPark and attract future suppliers and customers. The facility’s electric arc furnace steel mill is expected to produce 70% lower emissions than traditional blast furnaces, aligning with the Hyundai Motor Group’s mission to advance sustainable energy solutions across all its subsidiaries. The mill is expected to produce 2.7 million metric tons of steel annually. Ultimately, the investment is expected to create more than 1,300 direct new jobs with an average salary of $95,000, in addition to 4,100 indirect new jobs throughout the Capital Region.

SHINTECH PLAQUEMINE PLANT 4 SHINTECH’S SPP-4 INVESTMENT significantly expands production capacity at the company’s Plaquemine site with a second ethylene unit and fourth chlor alkali (CA)/vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) unit. Once fully operational, the new units will increase Shintech’s ability to vertically integrate its products. Close working relationships with Gov. Jeff Landy, the Louisiana Department of Economic Development, Iberville Parish and Entergy were essential to the finalization of the SPP-4 deal. The project is expected to generate approximately 3,500 construction jobs, 160-plus new direct jobs and 100-plus new nested contractor jobs. The announcement builds on the company’s decades-long history of investment in the area, including seven major projects totaling some $9 billion that have created 725 direct jobs and 940 nested contractor jobs. Shintech’s Louisiana operations have also supported more than 3,000 regional indirect jobs and thousands of construction jobs. Currently, the facilities in Louisiana and Texas lead Shin Etsu’s Infrastructure Materials business, typically generating 30 to 40 percent of the overall corporate revenue. In Shintech’s 50-year history of PVC production in Texas and 25-year history in Louisiana, the company has multiplied its production by more than 35 times.

1012industryreport.com

PORT RAW Material yard CONVEYOR

SCRAP yard SLAB yard

Hot Rolled coil yard

Direct Reduction Plant

Electric Arc Furnace

Cold Rolled coil yard

RAIL

Steelmaking

Hot strip mill

Cold strip mill

ARGENT LNG IN JULY 2025, the Greater Lafourche Port Commission’s Board of Commissioners approved the acquisition of a 743-acre tract of state land to expand Argent LNG’s project footprint at Port Fourchon to 900 acres. The transaction was critical, as it gave Argent LNG the space it needed to develop a full-scale $18 billion export terminal with a projected capacity of up to 25 million tons of LNG per year. For Louisiana, the deal signals that the state’s ports and public institutions can attract, negotiate and execute the kind of complex, large-scale investment that will define the next chapter of U.S. energy. The investment is expected to create hundreds of permanent jobs and thousands of construction positions anchored at Port Fourchon. During construction, Argent LNG will utilize a modular design approach that reduces construction complexity, shortens timelines and improves capital efficiency, making it one of the more efficiently structured LNG developments in the country. The LNG owner has already secured non-binding “heads of agreement” with Bangladesh, Turkey and others to supply their future LNG needs, connecting a land transaction in Lafourche Parish directly to energy security conversations around the world. For decades, Port Fourchon has been a vital player in the servicing of deepwater Gulf oil and gas activity. The Argent LNG project adds a new dimension to that identity, positioning the port as a next-generation LNG export hub with global reach. 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 35

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COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS

LONG

THE EXECUTIVES

VIEW

These energy leaders are investing in the operations, people and capabilities their companies will need next.

DANNY CEDOTAL,

vice president of manufacturing, Shintech Inc.

COLETTE HIRSTIUS,

president, Shell USA and executive vice president, Shell Gulf of America IN HER ROLE as president of Shell USA Inc., Colette Hirstius leads the strategic integration and governance of Shell’s diverse U.S. businesses and represents the company in key energy policy and societal discussions. She is responsible for aligning Shell’s U.S. operations with its global strategy, overseeing a portfolio that spans the entire energy value chain, from exploration and production to trading to manufacturing, marketing and power distribution. As executive vice president of the Gulf of America, Hirstius oversees Shell’s offshore operations in the region, including 10 production hubs and a vast subsea infrastructure network, driving performance, safety and sustainability in one of Shell’s most critical upstream assets. It is the first time in the history of Shell that these roles have been domiciled in Louisiana. Hirstius has combined her international experience with the unique perspective she brings as a native Louisianan, playing a pivotal role in reinforcing the state’s position as a global energy hub while supporting long-term investment in the state. This includes championing the development of Shell’s new Gulf of America headquarters in the New Orleans’ River District. As an early adopter of digital transformation, Hirstius champions the use of technology to eliminate hazardous work, transform to a more affordable and sustainable way of working and improve workforce decision quality with AI in a manner that has kept focus, care and respect for people. She also actively promotes collaboration across industry, academia and communities.

1012industryreport.com

SINCE JOINING SHINTECH in 2013, Danny Cedotal has guided the company through numerous expansions and investments, including a $3.4 million investment announced in March that seeks to bolster the plant’s capabilities. The new investment builds on Shintech’s 25-year track record of continued growth in Louisiana, including seven major projects totaling $9 billion that have created 725 direct jobs and 940 nested contractor jobs. Also in March, Shintech celebrated its 25th anniversary in Louisiana. Today, the facility is recognized as the gold standard across Shintech operations—leading in safety, quality, reliability and environmental performance, including more than 15 years without a recordable injury. Today, Cedotal guides nearly 1,000 direct employees and nested contractors across operations in both Louisiana and Texas. He is also community minded, having served as chairman of the Louisiana Chemistry Association Board from 2024-2025. He also volunteers his time with organizations such as St. John Church, Al Hambra and The Arc of Iberville. Shintech’s integrated manufacturing facilities produce polyvinyl chloride (PVC) products, including the company’s manufacturing facilities operations, maintenance, environmental health and safety, and materials handling. The company’s Louisiana operations have supported more than 3,000 regional indirect jobs and thousands of construction jobs.

PAUL DANOS, owner and CEO, Danos AS CEO OF DANOS, Paul Danos provides enterprise leadership for the company’s operations with a focus on strategy development and long-term growth. In recent months, Danos has guided the company through significant milestones, overseeing major acquisitions to expand Danos’ capabilities. In March 2024, Danos Group acquired Performance Energy Services, enhancing its project services portfolio and creating more growth opportunities for employees. Then, in February 2025, the company acquired the assets of X-Pro Valve and Surplus Valve Warehouse, further strengthening its valve and wellhead services for industrial and energy clients. In June 2025, Danos announced the successful acquisition of Wood’s U.S. onshore labor supply operations, marking its seventh acquisition since 2014 and reinforcing its long-term growth strategy by expanding service capabilities, investing in its people and strengthening support for customers nationwide. Danos currently serves on the executive committee and is past chairman of the board of the National Oceanic Industries Association, is a member of the Committee of 100 for Leaders for a Better LA, recently served as president and board member of the South Central Industrial Association, is a graduate of the Council for a Better Louisiana Leadership Louisiana program and is a member of the Tugboat Institute. He has also spoken before Congress on behalf of the energy industry and written influential opinion pieces on the offshore energy industry’s prominence in both the U.S. and world energy economy. Danos is a champion of community and environmental stewardship. The company has supported 234 nonprofits through the Danos Foundation and actively participated in coastal restoration projects, including the construction of artificial reefs, pipeline preservation and living shorelines—all vital to protecting Louisiana’s fragile coast.

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 37

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COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS

ON THE

RISE DUSTIN DAVIDSON, secretary, Louisiana Department of Conservation and Energy

DUSTIN DAVIDSON IS the youngest person to have ever served as secretary of the Louisiana Department of Conservation and Energy, where he leads initiatives to drive sustainable energy solutions and manage natural resources effectively across the state. He has also helped author, write and lead legislative efforts to deliver and coordinate statewide business solutions to meet the needs of the workforce, the state economy and regions of Louisiana. Earlier this year, Davidson assisted in rolling out the “Whole-of-Louisiana Energy Strategy,” the state’s blueprint for delivering the resources, execution and innovation required to meet global energy demand. Davidson also helped author and introduce Louisiana’s first ever Nuclear Strategic Framework to address unprecedented energy demand, fuel conversion and enrichment, and a path for working with Louisiana’s existing manufacturing base to create and expand workforce opportunities within the state. Under his leadership, the state also hosted its first ever Nuclear Strategy and Supply Chain Summit earlier this year. This event, convened by Gov. Landry, brought together key decision makers across the nuclear value chain to put Louisiana’s Nuclear Strategic Framework into action and advance the state’s nuclear priorities. In his earlier position as deputy secretary, Davidson helped lead the department reorganization, coordinating and consolidating the functions, powers, duties and responsibilities of the executive branch dealing with natural resources and energy.

1012industryreport.com

These leaders are gaining influence as Louisiana tackles growing demand for power.

DAVID CARTER, principal, Emergent Method AS PRINCIPAL AT Emergent Method, David Carter has more than a decade of experience supporting major energy, economic development, infrastructure and public affairs initiatives across Louisiana and the Gulf South. He advises public sector leaders, private companies and industry partners on strategic planning, stakeholder engagement, communications, project implementation and complex policy issues. Carter recently played key leadership roles in several of Louisiana’s most consequential energy and economic development initiatives. He led Emergent Method’s support of LED’s 2025 strategic planning process and served as a key contributor to the state’s “Whole-of-Louisiana Energy Strategy,” aligning state agencies, regional and local partners, regulators, utilities, and private industry around a coordinated approach to energy production, industrial growth, infrastructure, workforce and investment. He also supported Louisiana’s Nuclear Strategic Framework and the Louisiana Nuclear Strategy & Supply Chain Summit, both of which position the state to compete across nuclear manufacturing, generation, fuel conversion and fuel enrichment. In parallel, he leads Emergent Method’s management of the Louisiana HERO Program, a $500 million grid resilience initiative administered by the Louisiana Department of Conservation and Energy. At the local level, Carter has worked with elected officials, private sector CEOs and C-suite executives, regional economic development organizations, public agencies and community stakeholders to connect major energy opportunities to local priorities, site readiness, workforce development and long-term prosperity. At the state level, his work has supported Louisiana’s broader strategy for competing in energy, process industries, nuclear, hydrogen, grid resilience and industrial investment. And at the national and global level, Carter has helped strengthen Louisiana’s position as a nation-leading energy and industrial platform with the resources, infrastructure, workforce and execution capacity to serve growing demand.

LAURA BEAUCHAMP, vice president,

business operations and strategy, Entergy Louisiana

IN HER ROLE, Laura Beauchamp recently coordinated the development of the advanced gas-fired power plants in Richland Parish to feed Meta’s new AI data center, completing timely filings with regulators to ensure grid reliability and lower fuel costs shared by all customers. She was also instrumental in bringing Hyundai Steel’s manufacturing facility to the state and strengthening Louisiana’s clean-energy ecosystem by partnering on the First Solar facility in New Iberia, strategically linking local solar manufacturing with grid delivery. Beyond execution, Beauchamp’s leadership in developing Entergy’s Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) and her service on the Louisiana Climate Taskforce and LSU advisory councils illustrate her strategic influence in shaping policy, innovation and sustainable growth across the region. Through her leadership at Entergy Louisiana, Beauchamp has advanced the state’s transition to cleaner energy by guiding major solar and renewable initiatives, helping move the company toward long-term environmental goals while maintaining reliability and affordability for customers. She has also shaped the regulatory and policy landscape by leading key filings and testimony that support expanded renewable capacity and innovative customer programs, reinforcing Louisiana’s credibility as an energy leader. 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 39

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COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS

THE

BIGBUILD

Grid improvements, pipelines and industrial facilities define this year’s large company finalists.

DANOS

SHELL FOR MORE THAN a century, Shell has been a major Louisiana energy company, with operations spanning oil and gas exploration and produc‑ tion, refining, chemicals and LNG. Over the past year, its Mars Platform became the first Gulf deepwater platform to produce 1 billion barrels of oil, while Shell’s Gulf portfolio received MiQ methane certification. Shell Norco also completed a major planned turnaround and overhaul of key gasoline production units, while work continues on the Rome Pipeline to improve oil transportation and market access. Shell contributes more than $250 million annually in Louisiana taxes, roy‑ alties and fees. Its community investment includes $30.4 million for educator development, STEM training, workforce development and youth education initiatives from 2023 through 2025. The company has also supported intern‑ ships, career training and higher education, including a $27.5 million gift to LSU that established the Institute for Energy Innovation and helped fund the Our Lady of the Lake Interdisciplinary Science Building.

ENTERGY LOUISIANA ENTERGY IS ADVANCING a $2 billion grid-hardening plan designed to strengthen the state’s electric system against severe weather. The first phase, valued at about $1.9 billion, includes more than 2,100 resilience projects and forms the opening segment of a broader 10-year strategy. The work will upgrade roughly 3,238 miles of distribution and trans‑ mission lines and replace or reinforce about 69,000 utility poles and structures statewide. The company has also played a central role in major economic develop‑ ment projects, including Meta and Hut 8 data centers and Hyundai Motor Group’s steel manufacturing facility. Entergy’s approach earned White House recognition through its Fair Share Plus pledge. The company also received its 10th consecutive Edi‑ son Electric Institute Corporate Citizenship Award for employee engage‑ ment and its 51st EEI Emergency Response Award. 1012industryreport.com

FOUNDED IN 1947 as a single tugboat operation, Danos has grown into a global energy services company employing more than 3,800 people. The family-owned company provides production, automation, decommissioning, coastal restoration, supply chain and energy systems services, along with fabrication, construction, coatings, scaffolding and rope access through Per‑ formance Energy Services. Recent growth includes the 2024 acquisition of Performance Energy Services, the 2025 acquisition of assets from X-Pro Valve and Surplus Valve Warehouse, and Wood’s U.S. onshore labor supply operations. Danos leaders also help shape energy policy and industry organizations at the state and federal levels. Its community impact extends well beyond the jobsite. Danos has partnered with public agencies and nonprofits on roughly 20 coastal restoration projects, including artificial reefs, pipeline preservation and living shorelines. Through the Danos Foundation, the company has supported 234 nonprofits. Danos was also recently named LABI’s Company of the Year and recognized for growth on the LSU 100 and LSU Roaring 20 lists.

EXCEL CONTRACTORS THIS INDUSTRIAL CONSTRUCTION and maintenance contractor primarily serving the industrial and energy sectors has been directly responsible for bringing transformational ammonia and low‑carbon energy projects from concept to reality. The company’s work on CF Industries’ NH3 Green Ammonia Facility in Donaldsonville will likely establish Louisiana as a global leader in carbon‑free hydrogen and ammonia production. During construction, Excel Installed more than 31,000 linear feet of piping and 380 tons of structural steel while working 71,000 self-performed direct labor hours – with zero near‑miss safety incidents. Once operational, the facility will generate hydrogen via electroly‑ sis with no carbon emissions and enable production of up to 20,000 tons of green ammonia annually. To the west, the Beaumont New Ammonia facility, which required more than six million labor hours of labor to complete, was recently handed over by Excel to Woodside following successful performance testing. 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 41

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COVER STORY / LOUISIANA ENERGY AWARDS

THE

ESSENTIAL WORK

RES CONTRACTORS OVER THE PAST decade, RES Contractors has completed more than 1,600 projects for industrial clients across the Gulf Coast, providing electrical, instrumentation, fabrication, commissioning, maintenance and construction services. The company is built to scale during major projects and turnarounds while maintaining a strong focus on safety, quality and continuous improvement. That performance has earned RES numerous state and national honors, including the 2026 Greater Baton Rouge Industry Alliance Safety Excellence Award and recognition on ABC National’s Top Performers List. The company also recently completed a comprehensive leadership training program focused on accountability, communication and stronger management across the organization. RES is equally focused on developing the next generation of skilled workers. It participates in high school career fairs, ABC’s Build Your Future events and GBRIA’s Teacher Externship Program, introducing students and educators to industrial career pathways. Its community support also extends to school athletic programs, FFA chapters, churches, volunteer fire departments, charitable organizations and local fundraisers, along with contributions to the American Heart Association and Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Three Louisiana firms show how technical skill and public trust both matter to industrial projects.

THE TJC GROUP THIS CONSULTING FIRM has helped industrial clients secure and sustain public support by building knowledge, trust and goodwill among stakeholders. The firm currently supports clients representing more than $40 billion in announced investment, providing public affairs, stakeholder and community engagement, strategic communications, reputation management, governmental and regulatory affairs, industry association management and Community Advisory Panel facilitation. A major part of that work centers on CAPs, which bring community stakeholders and industrial facility leaders together for candid dialogue, feedback and relationship-building. The TJC Group currently manages and professionally facilitates 22 CAPs representing more than 70 industrial sites, more than any other firm in the U.S. While much of its work has supported new industrial investments and projects across Louisiana, the firm also works extensively with existing facilities, helping them maintain strong community relationships, address emerging concerns and strengthen the long-term public license to operate that is critical to continued industrial growth.

ORION ENGINEERS + CONSTRUCTORS THE KEY TO Orion Engineers + Constructors’ impact has been its use of modern engineering tools, digital collaboration platforms and project management technology to extend its reach beyond Louisiana into other regions. The technology-enabled approach allows the industrial designer/constructor to work seamlessly with clients and projects across broader geographic markets while still anchoring core engineering, design and project execution functions in Louisiana. As a result, Orion can “bring work back home,” channeling projects secured nationally into Louisiana-based teams, thereby increasing local economic activity and professional opportunities. The model not only expands the company’s competitiveness but also supports the state’s broader energy ecosystem by keeping high-quality engineering work local. In doing so, they help position Louisiana as a participant in the energy industry and as a strategic base of operations for delivering complex energy projects across an increasingly connected and global market. On a national level, the company supports large-scale infrastructure and energy projects across the U.S., particularly in industrial and utility sectors. Globally, Orion’s work ties into international energy and industrial markets through its clients and project scope. 1012industryreport.com

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 43

EVERY DROP COUNTS

www.lardoil.com | 1(800) 738-7738 |

LardOilCompany

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

LEADERS

OF INDUSTRY These five Louisiana companies are driving economic growth and strengthening communities in very powerful and very different ways. SIMPSON SPORTS ENGINEERING | FRESH MARKET BY PREMIER DYNAMIC GROUP | CRUMP WILSON ARCHITECTS | descote, inc.

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10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 45

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

G. Anthony Miller, Chief Operations Officer of St. John the Baptist School System, with Simpson Sports Engineering owner Jesse Simpson, who recently completed turf replacement projects at East St. John and West St. John High Schools with support from Marathon. (Photo by Don Kadair)

SIMPSON SPORTS ENGINEER ING

WHEN INDUSTRY INVESTS IN LOCAL SCHOOLS, SSE CREATES A TRUE HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE

hen people think of industry, they think of pipes and steel, smokestacks and cranes. But ask Jesse Simpson, the owner of Simpson Sports Engineering, about Louisiana’s booming petrochemical and manufacturing sectors, and he thinks about something else: improved recreational facilities for schools that could not otherwise afford to upgrade. A case in point: the recently completed installation of new football fields at East St. John and West St. John High Schools, the result of a partnership between Marathon Petroleum’s Garyville Refinery, the St. John the Baptist Parish school system and Simpson’s Baton Rouge civil engineering firm that specializes in sports facility

construction. For Simpson, who founded the company in 2017, that project exemplifies the ways that manufacturers contribute to Louisiana’s quality of life beyond the jobs they create and the spending they generate for local businesses. “These partnerships are a great example of how the industry Louisiana is known for is giving back to be sure their communities are benefiting in big ways,” Simpson says. Simpson Sports Engineering focuses on athletics site design, project management and bid process consulting.

Top Executive: Jesse Simpson, Owner SIMPSONSPORTSENGINEERING.COM • 225.572.8852

46 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

1012industryreport.com

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

SSE designs and engineers sports facility projects for schools and colleges like Walker High, Zachary High and McNeese State University, as well as recreation facilities like the Chappapeela Sports Park in Hammond, (Photos courtesy of SSE)

“These partnerships are a great example of how the industry Louisiana is known for is giving back to be sure their communities are benefiting in big ways.” -Jesse Simpson, OWNER, SSE ENGINEERING

1012industryreport.com

Its client list includes city and parish governments that have driven Louisiana’s sports-tourism boom and, increasingly, public and private high schools and colleges. Recent school projects include a new turf field for Walker High School and a 100-yard indoor football practice pavilion for West Monroe High School. “Structures like the West Monroe pavilion are becoming more common and more necessary, given the attention on heat-related illnesses in high school athletics,” Simpson says. Zachary, Port Allen, East Feliciana Parish, and Brusly are among the Capital Region high schools now competing on playing surfaces SSE has designed and helped to install. While his firm’s reputation for quality and innovation have his services in demand outside of Louisiana, Simpson continues to prioritize

community involvement at home. SSE is active in First Tuesday, an organization supporting roughly a dozen nonprofits around Baton Rouge; the office closes one day a month so staff can volunteer. “It is one of my favorite things we do as a company,” Simpson says. That same throughline — investing in institutions that serve a broader public — is what Simpson credits for the company’s success as it approaches the 10-year mark. “Showing up with consistency has continued to be an integral part of our business growth,” he says. For school systems like St. John the Baptist Parish’s, and for the industrial companies that call those communities home, that consistency is turning into visible results on the ground in the form of firstclass fields that students play on.

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 47

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

From left, Adam Curole, Operations Director; Grady Verret, Founder & CEO; Emily Bonvillain Rini, Strategic Growth Director; Chef Kevin Calmes, Culinary Director (Photo by Tyler Neil)

F R ES H M A R K E T BY P R E M I E R

FEEDING THE WORKFORCE, RIGHT WHERE THE WORK HAPPENS

t a 24/7 workplace, lunch does not always happen at noon. Employees may have a short break, controlled-access gates to navigate and few practical food options nearby. At manufacturing facilities, industrial sites, offices, and other large workplaces, something as basic as getting a meal can quickly become an operational issue. Employers face the other side of that problem. They want to keep teams close to the job, support multiple shifts and overtime, reduce unnecessary vehicle traffic, and provide quality food without creating another operation for management to run. Fresh Market by Premier was built around that need.

The Thibodaux-based company provides workplace meal solutions for commercial and industrial environments. Its flagship Fresh Market program places chef-prepared meals, snacks and beverages directly inside the workplace, using selfservice technology that can operate 24 hours a day without a permanently staffed point of sale. Fresh Market is only one part of the model. Depending on the facility, Premier can support fullservice cafeterias, permanent or secondary Fresh Markets, pantry and coffee programs, catering, overtime meal programs, temporary markets and hybrid foodservice plans combining several services under one provider. “Every facility is different,” says Premier

Companies Strategic Growth Director Emily Rini. “The workforce, hours, available space and service needs all play a role in determining what the right foodservice program looks like.” Fresh food is still the reason the program works. Fresh Market locations can include chef-prepared entrees, salads, sandwiches, and other meal options, along with a full selection of snacks, healthier choices, beverages, and convenience products. What customers see is the market. Behind it is a larger production, delivery, and field-service operation. Meals move through a managed cold chain and are transported in refrigerated vehicles. Market technology provides sales and inventory

Top Executive: Grady Verret, CEO, Premier Food Group 1600 RIDGEFIELD ROAD, THIBODAUX, LA 70301 • 985.446.0075 • FRESHMARKETBYPREMIER.COM

48 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

1012industryreport.com

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Premier deploys 53-foot climate-controlled mobile Fresh Market trailers that can be placed on-site for short-term increases in workforce.

Fresh Markets are stocked with chefprepared meals, snacks and beverages directly inside the workplace.

information, while field operators adjust product mix and service frequency based on actual usage. Some facilities need one market. Others need several. A large workplace campus may require multiple service points, while a location with an existing cafeteria may need 24/7 meal access after the cafeteria closes. Other customers may 1012industryreport.com

Laconte Robertson, Packaging Team Member (Photo by Tyler Neil)

need overtime meals, catering, pantry service, or a combination of programs. Turnarounds, maintenance shutdowns, and major construction projects create a different challenge altogether. A facility’s population can increase dramatically for weeks or months, putting pressure on foodservice programs designed for the normal workforce. For those projects, Premier deploys 53-foot climate-controlled mobile Fresh Market trailers that can be placed on-site, scaled as workforce activity increases, and removed when the project ends. A 2026 maintenance shutdown in Plaquemine put that flexibility to the test. Over 52 active days, a temporary Fresh Market handled 29,924 transactions and sold 70,258 items. Daily volume averaged 575 transactions and reached a peak of 908 in a single day. As activity increased, Premier raised service frequency to five or six visits per week and adjusted inventory using transaction data and field feedback. As the workforce decreased, service and inventory were adjusted with it. The temporary market changed along with the demands of the project rather than requiring the facility to build a permanent solution for a temporary need. The idea behind Fresh Market can be traced to another large workforce event. While feeding cleanup crews following the 2010 BP oil spill, Premier

saw firsthand the need for quality meals that workers could access quickly and take back into the field. That experience helped shape a workplace food program around employees who could not simply leave the jobsite for a traditional meal. Premier already had decades of restaurant, catering and foodservice experience. Fresh Market applied that culinary and operating experience to a different setting: the workplace. The first Fresh Market opened in 2019 at Fletcher Technical Community College, and the program expanded into manufacturing and petrochemical facilities the following year. Since then, the platform has consistently grown. Fresh Market by Premier will have more than 50 locations this year, along with an expanding number of permanent and temporary foodservice programs. “Every new location teaches us something,” Rini says. “The needs aren’t the same from one workplace to another, and that’s helped us continue to improve the program as we’ve grown.” The needs vary by customer, but the objective is consistent: give employees dependable access to quality food where they work. Whether a customer needs a staffed cafeteria, a 24/7 Fresh Market, multiple markets across a large campus, a mobile market supporting a shutdown or a combination of services, Premier can tailor the foodservice program to the facility and its workforce. 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 49

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION Ross Aguilar was named President, USA/CAN of descote, inc. in December 2025. (Photo by Don Kadair)

d e s c o t e, i n c .

A FRENCH MANUFACTURER WITH DEEP LOUISIANA ROOTS USHERS IN A NEW GENERATION OF LEADERSHIP AND GROWTH

n 1984, Jean-Pierre Richer packed his descote

bellows sealed globe valve in a suitcase and set out from his home in Lyon, France, to find customers wherever the world’s most hazardous chemicals were produced. Richer’s travels included Baton Rouge, where he found a ready market for his overseas manufacturing company’s signature product, engineered to manage the flow and pressure of lethal, corrosive fluids that other valves can’t handle. After five years of relying on a local distributor to bring its valves to market, descote established its own North American sales, technical and distribution office in Baton Rouge in 1989. Today it serves roughly 150 U.S. and Canadian companies and more than 200 industrial sites along the Mississippi River corridor and beyond, including Olin Chlor Alkali, Bayer, Marathon Petroleum,

OxyChem, Formosa Plastics and Westlake. “A lot of these clients have quality expectations for these valves because they’re going into highly hazardous and corrosive environments,” says Ross Aguilar, president of descote’s U.S. and Canadian operations. “Our entire focus is on reducing the probability of a failure, especially of the fluid leaking out of the valve and exposing humans and their operators to these fluids. We are dedicated to this one product, and that’s it.” In 2024, descote’s 50th year in business globally, Jean-Pierre’s son, Vincent Richer, became global president of the company and handed the reins of the USA and Canada operation to Aguilar. He succeeds longtime president Mark Fucich, now descote’s chief strategy officer. “Jean-Pierre really wanted to secure descote’s future for the next 50 years in USA and Canada,” Aguilar says. A six-person Baton Rouge team—including

application engineer Beau Dennis, regional sales managers Eric Nicaud and Billy Bahnsen, customer service rep Parker Smith and warehouse manager Carey Darcey—covers the full U.S. and Canadian market. Underpinning all of it is an exacting quality assurance process. Every valve is built to an inspection and test plan that follows it from raw material to finished product. “Everything we do is for lethal, toxic, hazardous, radioactive service,” Aguilar says. “That’s our standard manufacturing process.” It’s a standard built on a simple philosophy that has carried descote through five decades and two generations of leadership. “We’re going to take the hard right instead of the easy wrong,” Aguilar says. “Our total focus is delivering to the customer what the customer requires and expects.”

Top Executives: Ross Aguilar, President, USA/Canada 11529 SUN BELT CT • BATON ROUGE, LA 70809 • 225.308.2424 • DESCOTE.COM 50 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

An aerial view of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ West Shore Lake Pontchartrain Barrier Construction Project in partnership with Dynamic (Photo by Louis Bergeron/Dynamic)

DY N A M I C G R O U P

LISTEN FIRST: HOW DYNAMIC TURNS HARD PROJECTS INTO SHARED WINS

ynamic’s approach to a project starts long before the first shovel goes into the ground: listen to the client, build an execution plan centered on safety, and adapt as conditions change. Safety is treated as a nonnegotiable across every job site, from a hyperscale data center build to a storm-barrier to protect a region for the next century. CEO Zach Butterworth has seen that discipline pay off from more than one side of the table. Before leading Dynamic, he spent years on the government side of major construction programs, an experience, he says, that showed him the best contractors listen before they build. “Every client has a different challenge, and you have to understand the problem before you can build the right solution,” Butterworth says. “At Dynamic, we start by listening to what the client is trying to accomplish, understanding the pressures and constraints they are working under, and then building the best solution around their needs.” It is a philosophy that shows up first in

Dynamic’s mission critical work on hyperscale data center campuses where schedule certainty is everything and the margin for error is razor-thin. The same discipline carries into flood-protection infrastructure, like the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ regional flood protection project, and into disaster recovery work that rebuilds communities at scale. “On a mission-critical hyperscale project, the client’s priority is safety, communication, certainty and the flexibility to keep the overall project on schedule,” Butterworth says. “When we build flood protection for the Army Corps, tens of thousands of families are relying on us to deliver. The challenges are different, but our approach is the same: listen first, understand what the client needs and build the right solution for them.” Much of that flexibility comes down to capability. Rather than subcontracting out most of a project, Dynamic executes many scopes across clearing, grading, foundations, pile driving, concrete and site logistics with owned equipment, along with building

construction and interiors spanning hundreds of thousands of square feet. “That breadth allows us to bring more of the solution under one roof with our divisions taking the lead,” Butterworth says. The company pairs that in-house capacity with a deliberate push to hire locally and bring on local subcontractors and vendors wherever it’s working. “By bringing people from the community into the project, we build relationships and create trust around the broader work being done,” he says. It also keeps clients close to the process. Butterworth and Dynamic’s executive team personally checks in regularly, and gives clients direct access to Dynamic’s leadership, project teams and crews. “We bring ideas and solutions to the table, listen to their direction and make decisions together,” he says. “We want our clients to know we are working alongside them toward the same outcome.”

Top Executives: Josh McCoy, Executive Chairman; Zach Butterworth, Chief Executive Officer; John Austin, Executive Vice President for Mission Critical 3045 WESTFORK DR. • BATON ROUGE, LA 70816 • 225.570.6377 • DYNAMICGRP.COM 1012industryreport.com

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

From left, Project Manager Eric Kimbrough; Interior Design Project Manager Cassidy Blank; AIA | Architect and Managing Partner Mike Wilson; Architect and Project Manager Emily Messelt; and SDA | Administrator Katharine Simon (Photo by Don Kadair)

C R U M P W I LSO N A RC H I T ECTS

BUILT ON RELATIONSHIPS: CRUMP WILSON’S PETROCHEMICAL REACH SPANS 18 STATES

or more than four decades, Crump Wilson Architects has quietly built one of Louisiana’s most far-reaching architecture firms by developing a unique design niche: petrochemical plant facilities. “It’s not that we don’t enjoy those other sectors,” says the firm’s managing partner, Mike Wilson. “We enjoy fire stations, financial institutions and other commercial projects, but we’ve been most heavily vested in the petrochemical sector.” Crump Wilson’s first petrochemical project was in 1984, when it was selected to be part of the design team that brought new life to BASF’s Geismar site. Typically, large industrial engineering firms design the manufacturing components of a site and “call us in to do the buildings related to that,” Wilson says. “The control centers, change houses, offices, that sort of thing.” Word of the firm’s work spread through BASF’s

regional and corporate ranks, carrying Crump Wilson’s projects into Georgia, the Carolinas, Missouri, Texas and as far aways as New Jersey. Today, the firm is licensed in 18 states, with a recently completed project in Michigan. Among its many clients are ExxonMobil, BASF, and W.R. Grace. One job leads to another, and another, and another. “We will work with the internal engineering groups of a particular client, and that lead engineer may leave and go to some other company. They call us a few months later bringing us to the new company,” Wilson says. “That’s pretty much how we’ve grown.” Most current projects run $8 million to $40 million, including a $35 million biosafety level 3 laboratory now under construction and a $25 million facility headed soon to bid. Anything larger than that and Crump Wilson partners with a bigger firm.

But no project is too small. Wilson says his team will help a longtime client pick out lampshades if that’s what’s needed. Crump Wilson employs 14 people, most working out of its Baton Rouge headquarters, with additional staff based in Atlanta, Birmingham and Mandeville, Louisiana. Even the remote team members come into the office on a regular schedule to maintain camaraderie. “It’s not about Mike Wilson, it’s about the team here,” Wilson says. He describes Crump Wilson as a place where young architects, interns, and designers can build a broad base of experience and grow into project managers and senior staff. “We always ask ourselves what’s in the best interest of the project,” Wilson says. “As soon as you take your focus off the project and start becoming self-serving, that’s when things fall apart.”

Top Executives: Mike Wilson, Managing Partner 9311 BLUEBONNET BOULEVARD, SUITE B • BATON ROUGE, LA 70810 • 225.387.2307 • CRUMPWILSONARCHITECTS.COM 52 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

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SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA’S ENERGY GOES FARTHER

Taesia Shello, global talent acquisition leader for Dow in Baton Rouge

Southwest Louisiana has long been a force in energy, and its reach continues to grow across the globe and toward new heights in space. Our region is home to the technology and infrastructure that move the world forward. We play a critical role in the global energy market, by representing nearly HALF of the United States’ energy exports. The Lake Area Industry Alliance brings industry and community together to advance innovation, strengthen our workforce and help ensure our energy is local, our impact is global and our future is limitless.

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SURGE POTENTIAL SPECIAL REPORT

Four data centers are rising at once in Louisiana. The early economic gains are striking, but so is the scale of what comes next. By Sam Barnes

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EGIONS OF THE STATE long known for their economic stagnation—or sluggish growth at best—are now experiencing an unprecedented surge in just about everything. All four of the state’s AI data center projects—Meta, Amazon, Delta Forge 1 and Hut 8—are under construction simultaneously, collectively representing more than $81.6 billion in investment. Sales tax revenue numbers are among the first to tell the tale, with percentage increases in some cities and parishes reaching triple digits in year-over-year comparisons. Property values and tax revenues are expected to follow suit, along with corresponding increases in housing demand, hotel occupancies, retail revenues and a host of other data sets.

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Most of the current work is taking place in the northern half of the state. “The north shall rise again,” jokes Justyn Dixon, president and CEO of the North Louisiana Economic Partnership in Shreveport. Amazon is already building two campuses in Bossier and Caddo parishes with a third at Resilient Technology Park in Shreveport to begin construction soon. The Amazon investment totals about $18 billion. “The first two projects are blowing and going,” Dixon says, “and we’re starting to see some evidence of that. As of September, Bossier Parish had already hit its annual sales tax revenue projections. We’ve also seen the numbers come up in Caddo, although not to the same degree.” Much of the early increase can be attributed to materials and equipment purchased for construction. For five area contractors, in fact, the Amazon contract

AMAZON GOES BIG: In north Louisiana, the company is investing $18 billion in campuses across Caddo and Bossier parishes that will support cloud computing technologies.

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“Today, the AI process is more advanced.”

COURTESY NORTH LOUISIANA ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP

JUSTYN DIXON, president and CEO, North Louisiana Economic Partnership

WHAT’ S N EXT

COULD THIS BE NO. 5? A 500-megawatt battery storage project proposed by NextEra is moving through an expedited regional review process in Livingston Parish and would help support an unidentified commercial entity with unusually large electricity needs, according to documents reviewed by Baton Rouge Business Report. The Midcontinent Independent System Operator, or MISO, announced Sept. 8 that Steamboat Energy Storage, proposed by NextEra Energy Capital Holdings, was selected for its Expedited Resource Addition Study, or ERAS, program. MISO records place the four-hour battery storage system in Livingston Parish, with Entergy Louisiana as the transmission owner and a targeted June 30, 2028,

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in-service date. Most notably, the records say Steamboat would support the new incremental load of an unidentified “commercial entity” requiring 330 to 360 MW of capacity. NextEra provided that project description as part of the ERAS application process. The scale is significant. Conventional data centers may draw roughly 10 to 25 MW, while hyperscale, AI-focused facilities can require 100 MW or more, according to the International Energy Agency. MISO created ERAS to accelerate review of generation and storage projects needed to meet near-term electricity demand, with qualifying projects potentially moving through study to an interconnection agreement in three months.

Steamboat’s selection comes amid speculation about a potential data center in Livingston Parish, much of it centered on a 691-acre tract on Buddy Ellis Road adjacent to Our Lady of the Lake Livingston near Walker that was rezoned for heavy industrial use in November 2025. Parish President Randy Delatte said earlier this month there are currently no plans for a data center in the parish. It remains unclear who the commercial customer is, where it would locate or whether Steamboat is connected to the data center speculation. Entergy Louisiana declined to comment. Delatte and NextEra had not responded by 10/12 Industry Report’s deadline. —Reporting by Dillon Lowe

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“Louisiana is definitely in the game, and these projects have a tremendous positive impact on the entire region.” CHRIS MASINGILL, president and CEO, Louisiana Central

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represents the biggest in their company’s history. As for the rest of the economic data, “we’re still crunching the numbers,” Dixon says. “That’s some of the tussle back and forth right now … how much is actually going to end up going in the ground versus not, estimated jobs versus reality, etc.?” Ultimately, the data center campuses are expected to generate some 750 jobs, with wages averaging $90,000 a year. Unlike the state’s other data centers, the Amazon campuses are being built in or near an urban environment. That comes with certain advantages. “We already have much of the network in place to support it … Fibrebond in Minden makes mission-critical structures for data centers, Prolec GE in Shreveport manufactures transformers and SLB specializes in advanced manufacturing,” he says. “Combined, those companies have more than 4,000 employees in Shreveport/ Bossier and they’re all growing.”

Dixon says that electricity, water and infrastructure assets are adequate to support the new demand, but there are nevertheless challenges to overcome. “There’s a discrepancy right now (among some residents) between perceived and actual risks in terms of the data center’s impact,” Dixon says. “Today, the AI process is more advanced. Amazon is only going to use water for cooling 13% of the time, and they’re going to pay for any needed upgrades to water, wastewater, power, etc.”

FOR NOW, IT’S ALL ABOUT CONSTRUCTION Being the first entrant into the data center market and the largest, the $50 billion Meta project in Richland Parish paints a clearer economic picture. Much of the current boost in sales tax revenue is being felt in retail-heavy Monroe/West Monroe some 30 1012industryreport.com

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• Please respond by e-mail or phone with your approval or minor revisions. • AD WILL RUN AS IS unless approval or final revisions are received within 24 hrs from receipt of this proof. A shorter timeframe will apply for tight deadlines. • Additional revisions must be requested and may be subject to production fees. Carefully check this ad for: CORRECT ADDRESS • CORRECT PHONE NUMBER • ANY TYPOS This ad design © Melara Enterprises, LLC. 2026. All rights reserved. Phone 225-928-1700

META’S MANHATTAN:

Initial hype described this data facility under construction in Richland Parish as “Manhattansized.” In reality, the construction site covers 2,250-plus acres, roughly one-quarter the size of the New York City borough.

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$19.65M miles to the west. “More than 75% of the city of West Monroe’s budget comes from sales tax, so when they see a 30% jump in those numbers that has a huge impact,” says Rob Cleveland, president of Monroe-based economic development group Grow NELA. The numbers coming out of rural Richland Parish are comparably impressive: The Richland Parish School Board collected $19.65 million in sales tax revenue in the first quarter of this year versus just $2.36 million for the same time period a year earlier, and Richland Parish Police Jury tax collections increased from $1.57 million to $13.1 million. As a whole, the northeast region collected $127 million in sales tax 1012industryreport.com

Q1 2026

Richland Parish Police Jury sales tax collections

$1.57M Q1 2025

$13.1M Q1 2026

955 CHOCTAW DRIVE 225.313.4234 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 59

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“Bottom line, it’s not going to increase people’s rates. They’ll either believe it or they won’t.”

MADELINE GRACE CREATIVE

ROB CLEVELAND, president, Grow NELA

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D ATA C E N T E R S

revenue during Q1 2026, up from $84 million in Q1 2025. While it can be difficult to make a direct correlation between Meta and the increases in Monroe/West Monroe given the cities’ other income streams, “when the rural parishes see a significant increase and there have been no other major developments in the area, it’s easier to make that connection,” Cleveland says. Grow NELA will soon begin gathering property tax assessments and revenue data once the information becomes available. The Meta facility has its local opposition, but it has been minimal compared to other parts of the country, Cleveland says. “The power question has been answered repeatedly,” he adds. “It’s been approved publicly by the PSC, Entergy has talked repeatedly about it and shown that Meta is paying for the additional power generation. Bottom line, it’s not going to increase people’s rates. They’ll either believe it or they won’t.” To create a cohesive message, Grow NELA hired Crenshaw Analytics in Monroe to gather and interpret economic data attributable to the data center, with the resulting data posted on its newly created website—NELAgrowth.com. Chris Masingill, president and CEO of Louisiana Central in Alexandria, says his economic development group is in the process of putting together its first economic analysis following Applied Digital Corp.’s January groundbreaking at the $3.6 billion Delta Forge 1 data center campus in Boyce. The facility is currently under construction on nearly 300 acres. Preliminary data shows that the city of Boyce’s 2026 sales tax revenue has already surged a whopping 250% to date when compared to the same time last year, and 15% for all Rapides Parish. Applied Digital is beginning work at an ideal time, Masingill says, as the closure of International Paper in Pineville and the recent cancellation of the $2.5 billion Beaver Lake Renewable Energy project had left the economy stagnating. “This is a region of the state where there are resources across the board,” Masingill says. “We have available power, the right site and geographical location, and a major fiber corridor coming through the region. “We knew we were going to get 1012industryreport.com

a data center; it was just a matter of when.” Perhaps most interestingly, Delta Forge 1 will use little to no water for its processes; instead, it will rely upon a closed-loop, glycol-based system for cooling. The only water needed will be for breakrooms and restrooms—the equivalent of six or seven households. “Once the system is charged and filled for the first time, it’s only a matter of maintenance,” he says, “just like the antifreeze in your car.” Electricity isn’t an issue either, Masingill adds. The existing power grid can accommodate the entire project and “Applied will pay 100% of any additional utilities infrastructure that will be needed.” Louisiana Central created a website (Rapidesdatacenter.com) as a clearinghouse for all information related to the project in hopes of educating area residents about the data center. “We have international actors trying to negatively impact America’s ability to position strategically for AI and we feel we have to put America first,” Masingill says. “Louisiana is definitely in the game, and these projects have a tremendous positive impact on the entire region.” Once Applied Digital is operational, he plans to conduct a comprehensive economic analysis to examine the financial impact on the parishes surrounding Rapides. Meanwhile, Hut 8 is developing the lone south Louisiana data center—the multibillion-dollar River Bend campus just south of St. Francisville. The project could face its own struggles as contractors compete for labor in a booming industrial market. The project is expected to create about 1,000 construction jobs and up to 200 permanent operations and technical roles. In September, rumors emerged on social media about a possible data center in Livingston Parish near the Our Lady of the Lake Livingston campus, but as 10/12 Industry Report went to press, those remained unconfirmed. Baton Rouge Business Report did uncover that a 500-megawatt battery storage project proposed by energy giant NextEra to help support an unidentified commercial development with unusually large electricity needs in that parish is moving through an expedited regional review process.

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“You could … have these same oil crews work both the tech side and the oil and gas side … and develop a new industry in Louisiana.”

TERRI FENSEL

TONY DUPUY, co-founder, Forged Energy Solutions

W H AT ’ S NE X T The project is referred to as Steamboat Energy Storage. Entergy Louisiana is identified as the transmission owner, though company officials declined to comment at the time.

SUCCESS STRUGGLES For now, the sheer volume of contractors needed to build the data centers is providing the greatest source of strain. According to LED data, at peak of construction there will be some 12,000 construction workers building the four data center facilities—all at the same time. Paige Carter, chief business development officer for Louisiana Economic Development, says her office monitors construction timelines to prevent the market from becoming overheated, “but sometimes we struggle with our own success, and that’s unfortunate,” Carter says. “We want to make sure we’re mindful of resource restraints and that we grow smartly. It’s our responsibility to balance that.” The LED team also works with utility providers to ensure “that we agree on what’s best and what our resource availability is,” she adds. “We want to do economic development with our communities, not to our communities.” In that vein, The

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Rate Payer and Community Protection executive order signed by Gov. Jeff Landry in June establishes criteria to protect utility customers from the energy costs of largescale industrial projects such as AI data centers. LED develops a preliminary impact assessment for every new project, then takes the quantitative data and puts it into a qualitative format, which is then shared with regional and local partners and local governments. “The important thing is that we do that early during the site selection process,” Carter adds. “Once we get approval, that allows us to have conversations about what’s going on to ensure constituents are well represented.” Workforce training has been a big part of the discussion, as some 7,000 permanent data center jobs will need to be filled, statewide. In Baton Rouge, Meta is propping up a “workforce academy” at Associated Builders and Contractors Pelican Chapter’s Baton Rouge training center, with the first cohort of students expected to begin training in November. Announced in June, the $115 million initiative is designed to train workers for jobs in AI infrastructure. The program is free to participants, requires no prior experience and guarantees graduates a job offer with a Meta contractor.

This Lafayette company wants to send data centers out to sea In July, Tony Dupuy and the other founders of Lafayette-based Forged Energy Solutions posed an interesting question: Why not fabricate the data center components modularly and place them on abandoned oil platforms in the Gulf? In turn, the data center would be powered by turbines on a separate platform using existing offshore gas leases for fuel. Seawater would be used for cooling the data center components and existing underground cables to transfer the data. “We’re talking with lease owners to find underutilized gas resources that are still out there, whether on the shelf or further out,” Dupuy says. “It only takes about 250,000 cubic feet of natural gas to create 1 megawatt of power with a good turbine, and in some of these places there are some 9 million cubic feet of gas available. “And if four years down the road a field starts to deplete, we’ll just disconnect and move everything to a new field.” Dupuy acknowleges that steep challenges exist when moving any operation from land to offshore, “but I think we could successfully meld the two worlds together. You could rework the infrastructure and have these same oil crews work both the tech side and the oil and gas side … and develop a new industry in Louisiana.” As designers of the proposed system, Forged Energy Solutions believes the state should consider using existing offshore assets, energy resources and decades of operational experience to complement future infrastructure needs while saving the communities and landscapes from a proliferation of land-based data centers. “There’s just a significant opportunity here,” he adds, “to develop this system, put it in place and let it go.” —Sam Barnes

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Baton Rouge was chosen as one of four pilot markets for the academy, along with locations in Indiana, Ohio and Texas. David Helveston, president and CEO of ABC Pelican Chapter, says the connection was initially made between Meta and ABC’s national chapter. “Meta was intrigued by the partnership because of the infrastructure that ABC has in place, with chapter locations and training centers across the nation,” Helveston says. “Our hope is that everything will go well and this will continue to expand. Given our workforce training infrastructure and the investment that Meta is making in Louisiana, there’s a lot of interest in us expanding this across Louisiana to our different training centers.” The training will be conducted in four-week cohorts consisting of 160 instructional hours. “We are going to have to staff up, but there wasn’t a lot required of us from a facilities perspective to be ready to go,” he says. “That’s one of the main reasons we were selected.” Meanwhile, Louisiana Delta Community College in Monroe is “knocking workforce development out of the park,” says Grow NELA’s Cleveland. The college recently collaborated with Meta contractors to quickly prop up a data center technician training program, where students are trained in three-, four- and six-week programs to work at any data center in the country. At present, existing Delta facilities are adequate to support the training, but the school could soon

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need to expand as demand increases. In Alexandria, Louisiana Central is working to develop local training through Central Louisiana Technical Community College and has established a training working group with LSU of Alexandria, Northwestern State University and others. The Delta Forge 1 campus is expected to create some 400 permanent direct and indirect jobs, predominately electricians, welders and other trades. “We’re actively working toward scaling some of the existing programs to prepare for the project,” Masingill says. “The project should be completed in two and a half years, and we want to be ready to go.” And in Shreveport, the North Louisiana Economic Partnership is hoping the Dallas market will help fill the employment void at Amazon. It recently hired a local marketing firm to create promotional messaging for some 2 million people in the Dallas metro area. To date, 30 applicants have applied to area manufacturers and health care providers as a result of the marketing effort. It has also developed a six-week industrial “boot camp” training program in cooperation with area community colleges—dubbed Employment Preparedness and Workforce Readiness—where students learn basic skills and earn 12 certifications. “We’ve signed MOUs with over 30 companies, and they guarantee an interview when the student graduates,” Dixon says. “We had 100% placement in the last three classes.”

DELTA 1 FORGING AHEAD:

Applied Digital Corporation is developing this $3.6 billion data center in Rapides Parish to support large-scale AI training and inference.

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NEWS

“The challenge is less about generating information and more about turning growing volumes of data and AIgenerated content into something actionable.” KERR WALLS, digitalization manager, BASF

The productivity paradox

DON KADAIR

TECHNOLOGY

BY SAM BARNES

While the ROI can be difficult to track, ignoring AI is not an option.

or those who haven’t seen any meaningful bumps in productivity coming out of their AI investment, all that’s usually needed is a little patience. Many delays in ROI can be chalked up to the “Productivity Paradox,” a phenomenon coined in the 1990s that occurs during the early stages of tech deployment that lasts up to two years. “It’s typified by an immediate drop in productivity due to

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investment spending, training etc., followed by a bump in productivity after workers become trained on the new system,” says Andrew Schwarz, a professor in the College of Business at LSU and author of the AI for Business textbook. “Not long after, there’s another drop as companies expand the technology’s usage, then start putting together the infrastructure and governance around it. Then, productivity begins to improve again.”

The initial investment spend can be significant for industrial facilities, since the data often lies within machines that were previously isolated from internal IT systems. Essentially, the data is there but not readily accessible. “A manufacturing company gave me a tour of their facilities recently,” Schwarz says, “and my first question was whether they could provide me with data outputs from their equipment. Quite frankly, they didn’t know how.”

The equipment vendor subsequently charged them up to $50,000 per machine to set up the infrastructure necessary to output the data. Only then could they meaningfully incorporate AI into their operations. There are other possible reasons for a productivity lag—often, industrial owners find it difficult to find a direct linear connection between AI investments and productivity. “It’s a complex and nuanced issue,” he says. “Let’s say 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 67

NEWS: TECHNOLOGY you invest $1 million in AI, then egregious as using it when you realize that you don’t have access shouldn’t,” Schwarz says. to the data and you fix that problem. Then, you must change your OVERWHELMED processes, and you fix that, or you Some companies in the indusneed to add new workers, etc. trial space have become discour“At the end of all that, where aged by their huge digitization do you allocate ROI? Where did investments failing to move the the benefit come from? There’s productivity needle. They’re hopelittle doubt that it’s beneficial, but ful that AI can change all that. most likely it wasn’t directly due The key is to “lead with the to AI but to the change it brought business problem, avoid the about. It’s hard to separate the random acts of AI and really focus impact and what is making the on those problems that are going impact. “You must examine each to benefit from it,” says Natalie ‘use case’ to truly understand your Thompson, vice president of reliROI in a useful way.” ability at BP in Baytown, speaking Regardless, it’s imperative in at Reuter’s 2026 Downstream today’s competitive environment USA conference in Houston over that AI be a part of every business the summer. plan. To stay ahead of the curve A more targeted approach could significantly improve the in the rapidly evolving AI space, bottom line. “Using the right AI LSU will soon offer one of the tools can pull all that data, simplifirst AI bachelor’s degrees in fy it and help your engineers make the country, as well as a master’s the right decisions,” says Jacques degree in applied AI. McGregor, “If youDate: as an employer aren’t Ad proof Issue Fall 2026 #1 vice president of digi• Please what respondyou by e-mail or phone your approval ortal minor revisions. doing should towith bring transformation for Marathon • ADinto WILL the RUN AS IS unless approval or final revisions areinreceived within 24 hrs also speaking at San Antonio, AI organization to from receipt of this proof. A shorter timeframe will apply for tight deadlines. theto production conference. make it more that’sand as may be subject • Additional revisionsefficient, must be requested fees.

“It’s a complex and nuanced issue.” ANDREW SCHWARZ, professor, LSU College of Business and author of AI for Business, on a direct linear connection between AI investments and productivity

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NEWS: TECHNOLOGY

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“A lot of CEOs come back from meeting with the board or from attending conferences and the initial reaction is, ‘we need to put AI in everywhere.’ That’s totally the wrong approach. You need to figure out what are the most important processes that are going to move the needle for the company. Then figure out where AI is best suited.” LSU’s Schwartz has noticed another disturbing trend: the intentional underutilization of AI by employees. “We’re seeing an interesting development where employees are reluctant to embrace AI for fear of what could happen to their job if they demonstrate that it works,” he says. “It’s ironic, since if they started using it, they’d actually see their jobs improve.” Leadership should be clear when implementing any new technology that it’s driving efficiency, not eliminating jobs, and that it will redesign jobs in a meaningful way. “The message to any employee is to learn AI,” he adds. “I don’t

care where you are in the organizational chart, everyone needs to know AI because everyone’s job will be influenced by it in the long run. You need a base level of confidence to understand how it’s working and what it’s doing.” Kerr Wall, digitalization manager for BASF’s Monomers Division in Geismar and an adjunct professor at LSU, says directly connecting ROI with AI investments can be challenging “but when we see that we’re improving the way we forecast, the way we run the units, the decreased downtime … those are the KPIs that we care about,” Wall says. Over the last decade, Wall (along with Eric Dixon, who serves a similar role in the plant’s Intermediates Division) has been involved in a range of digitalization and AI-related initiatives within manufacturing and academia, including the creation of decision-support tools for raw material planning, production and process optimization, and more recently the use of generative AI

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 69

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NEWS: TECHNOLOGY

SAM BARNES

Speaking at Reuter’s 2026 Downstream USA conference in Houston this summer, Natalie Thompson, vice president of reliability at BP in Baytown (center) advised that the key is to “lead with the business problem, avoid the random acts of AI and really focus on those problems that are going to benefit from it.”

tools to improve productivity, knowledge management and software development workflows. “The challenge is less about generating information and more about turning growing volumes of data and AI-generated content into something actionable,” he adds. “We’ve seen real productivity gains in areas where AI augments existing workflows, but capturing value requires good data foundations, governance and clear business problems to solve.” It was a much different story when he arrived at the Geismar site in 2015. “The closer I got to manufacturing, the less technology there was,” he says. “In operations, they just kind of always got things done the same way.” 1012industryreport.com

Today, their processes are increasingly digitized, and with the incorporation of AI they’re building decision support systems that can offer suggestions and recommend courses of action. They’re also cataloging and organizing the “tribal knowledge” of outgoing retirees. “Knowledge management has been an issue that companies have been trying to solve for a long time,” he says, “and now AI is helping them finally make sense of the data. Suddenly, operators and engineers are finding the knowledge when they need it.” BASF has successfully partnered with LSU in generating new intellectual property, advancing cutting-edge research, developing student talent and creating a

clear pathway for transforming innovative research into practical industrial solutions. Currently, they’re developing AI models that help combine sensor data and unit knowledge for LLMs to explain operational issues and solutions. It all boils down to connecting the AI tools with the right context. “One of our core tools helps unify process, quality and domain data and integrates that with the LLMs to give operators or engineers the information that they need,” Wall says. Workers can also access corporate AI tools, such as BASF’s “Plant GPT” which can access all the company’s operating procedures. “Instead of having to find a file 10 folders deep on the network

drive, operators can now ask a question, then it finds the document and gives them the context about the document,” he adds. Wall doesn’t view AI as a competitor with BASF’s employees, but as a tool that can amplify their abilities. “At this point I don’t see AI replacing jobs,” Wall says. “It’s going to make them better employees, give them the right knowledge at the right time to answer questions, do the root cause analysis, figure out what’s wrong, etc. “AI is providing decision support, but our domain experts and operators must be the ones to validate and execute. We’re still having to do the work; we’re just getting better at it.” 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 71

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NEWS: INVESTMENTS

CARBON CONTROVERSY: BKV Carbon Ventures project manager Spencer Crouch explains how the carbon capture and sequestration process works at the company’s facility in Bridgeport, Texas, in May 2025. In Louisiana, growing community resistance is having a very real impact on industrial investments with a carbon sequestration component.

Second thoughts

LM OTERO/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

By SAM BARNES

Community pushback and regulatory uncertainty are giving pause to players in the CCS space.

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uncertainty around Class VI well permits and growing community resistance likely played big roles in the decisions. “These industrial companies need buyers that want a lower carbon product,” Upton says, “but if they don’t have a viable path for getting a Class VI permit it becomes harder to find customers willing to sign a contract due to the

CHERYL GERBER

he back-to-back cancellations of two Louisiana mega projects last summer provided a stark warning that growing community resistance is having a very real impact on industrial investments with a carbon sequestration component. Air Products announced in June that it was abandoning its $4.5 billion Louisiana Clean Energy project in Ascension Parish, and in the same month SunGas Renewables cancelled its $2.5 billion Beaver Lake Renewable Energy methanol facility near Alexandria. Both investments had endured protracted battles with area residents over their carbon capture plans. Greg Upton, associate professor-research, LSU Energy Institute, says the regulatory

uncertainty.” Upton expects to see a decline in the numbers of projects featuring a carbon capture component in his Gulf Coast Energy Outlook due out this fall—despite the Section 45Q federal tax credit remaining in effect until Jan. 1, 2033. The tax credit provides substantial, predictable and non-dilutive cash injections directly tied to the

“I don’t think the problem is a technical one; I think it’s political.” ERIC SMITH, associate director, Tulane Energy Institute

volume of carbon dioxide captured and stored. Eric Smith, associate director of the Tulane Energy Institute, says much of the current problem is tied to “imminent domain” issues, granting the power of the government to take private property for public use. “We have a group of people who don’t like it from an ideological standpoint and never will like it, but every country on Earth has an ability to compel people to allow right of ways for various infrastructure projects,” Smith says. “Unfortunately, we’re permitting the wells but not the pipelines to connect to the wells.” That leaves Gov. Jeff Landry with an interesting dilemma as he attempts to balance future industrial development with the antipathy 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 73

NEWS: INVESTMENTS

GREG UPTON, associate professor-research, LSU Energy Institute

from voters opposed to eminent domain. In fact, Landry placed a moratorium on new Class VI well permit applications in October 2025, which remains in effect. “I’m convinced that the sequestration technology is safe and proven, but citizens in certain parishes are not on board,” Smith says. “The political mess created by Air Products in Lake Maurepas is one example. A second is in Calcasieu Parish where the local citizens—who supported the LNG

74 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

DON KADAIR

“If (these companies) don’t have a viable path for getting a Class VI permit it becomes harder to find customers willing to sign a contract due to the uncertainty.”

buildout—apparently haven’t made the connection between carbon reduction and the sale of LNG into the export market.” In Calcasieu, Venture Global has promised to incorporate CCS into its LNG operations to offset greenhouse gas outputs, but local pushback has intensified. Meanwhile, the citizens of adjacent Cameron Parish have been largely supportive of CCS, which Smith credits to the strong relationship between Cameron LNG

and parish residents. “There’s not a happier group of Louisiana citizens, financially, than the people who live or own land in Cameron Parish,” he adds. “They’re very aware of the importance of the LNG market.” Much of the time, the problems lie in where companies plan to sequester the carbon and whether new pipelines will be necessary. Baton Rouge economist Loren Scott of Loren C. Scott & Associates says imminent domain issues are likely what killed the Beaver Lake Renewable Energy facility near Alexandria, since they’d planned to send the captured carbon to neighboring Vernon Parish by pipeline. “The combination of people along the pipeline route objecting and the people in Vernon Parish objecting certainly helped kill the project,” Scott says. “My forecast for Alexandria would have been a lot more optimistic if they’d gotten both the Applied Digital data center (valued at $3.6 billion) and Beaver Lake. They would have been rocking and rolling.”

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GREEN LIGHT: Despite growing pushback against carbon sequestration across Louisiana, the Cameron Parish community has been largely supportive of the technology. “There’s not a happier group of Louisiana citizens, financially, than the people who live or own land in Cameron Parish,” Tulane Energy Institute Associate Director Eric Smith says. “They’re very aware of the importance of the LNG market.”

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS/JACK BROOK

NEWS: INVESTMENTS Other projects that have fallen by the wayside might be indirectly tied to the CCS issue, although economic variables are also at play. “What I’ve noticed is that any owner that planned to build a facility fueled by something other than fossil fuels is having the most difficulty making the numbers work,” he says. “They haven’t been able to make the math work or there’s been some change in the market such as a loss in demand.” The cancellations reflect broader headwinds facing the renewables energy market. For example, companies around the world have delayed or canceled hydrogen projects amid escalating construction costs, weaker-than-expected demand and reduced federal support. Earlier this year, the Trump administration scaled back hydrogen incentives and canceled billions of dollars in planned investments tied to regional hydrogen hubs. Looking ahead, Scott expects the debate over carbon capture to intensify unless state leaders take a more active role in supporting the

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10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 75

technology. “My hope is that somewhere along the line, the governor is going to start picking up the baton and start coming out more in favor of CCS, approving more Class VI wells, which are necessary in order to inject this stuff into the ground,” Scott says. Regarding environmental concerns over sequestration, “let’s not throw the baby out with the wash,” Tulane’s Smith says. “If we think there are environmental concerns and that there is a technical solution that would allow for affordable monitoring of these wells, why aren’t we working on those projects? “But I don’t think the problem is a technical one; I think it’s political.”

“My hope is that somewhere along the line, the governor is going to start picking up the baton and start coming out more in favor of CCS.” LOREN SCOTT, economist, Loren C. Scott & Associates

2023 (purported to be the largest carbon pipeline system in the U.S.) to transport captured carbon from plants along the Gulf to underground storage sites or for enhanced oil recovery (EOR), whereby captured carbon is GETTING CREATIVE injected into depleted oil reservoirs The success of future CCS to push crude toward production investments might hinge on finding wells. different avenues for transportation Meanwhile, CF Industries’ Blue and sequestration. In that vein, Point One low-carbon ammonia ExxonMobil is perhaps ahead ofAd proof facility Issue Date: Fall 2026 #3near Donaldsonville, which • Please respond by e-mail or phoneiswith your approval orbroke minor revisions. the game—the company using ground in August, plans to • ADalready WILL RUNestablished AS IS unless approval or final revisions are received within hrs the Denbury sequester its24carbon at the Pelican from receipt of this proof. A shorter timeframe will apply for tight deadlines. pipeline network it acquired in Sequestration Hub in Livingston • Additional revisions must be requested and may be subject to production fees.

Parish. The hub is owned by energy companies 1PointFive and Enbridge. “I believe the pipelines are already in place, so I don’t expect they will have any issues,” Scott says. Additionally, the River Parish Sequestration Project near the RiverPlex MegaPark in Ascension plans to develop a $566 million CCS project once its Class VI well permit is approved. The facility will be run by Blue Sky Infrastructure. And in Caldwell Parish, the $2-billion Strategic Biofuels

DON KADAIR

NEWS: INVESTMENTS Louisiana Green Fuels facility at the Port of Columbia is bypassing the need for pipelines entirely by sequestering its carbon on site. “That one is likely to move forward … and they already have a Class VI well permit to do that,” Scott says. “They also plan to build a powerplant to be fueled by wood waste, which will help the struggling timber industry in that part of the state.” While the Air Products and Beaver Lake cancellations were undoubtedly impactful, Scott can think of no better time for them to have happened. “Under normal times that would have been a big loss the state, but it all gets lost in the billions of dollars in projects that are still coming down the pike,” he adds. “If we’d had $1 billion in projects, statewide, in 2012 we would have considered that a good year. Now, we’ve got more than $100 billion in industrial investment and that was before SpaceX was announced at $100 billion. It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before.”

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FOCUS

ON SITE: Louisiana Oil & Gas Association President Mike Moncla’s Lafayette business—Moncla Workover & Drilling—has held a contract in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for more than a decade.

ENERGY

An unintended purpose The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is living way beyond its shelf life as inventories drop to near record lows. By SAM BARNES

TERRI FENSEL

very time oil is extracted from the oil into the market. purchase or a swap transaction. During a U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, “Through the 11 years we’ve been there, swap, The Energy Policy and Conservation the more unstable the system likely we’ve had presidents fill it (the SPR) with high Act of 1975 gives the Energy Department the becomes. That’s because the manpriced oil, sell oil off at low prices, not add oil authority to exchange oil from the reserve with made network of salt dome caverns, when you’d think they should and sell oil when a private company. In return, the SPR receives scattered along the Gulf Coast in Texas and you’d think they shouldn’t,” Moncla says in a more oil than it released; thereby acquiring Louisiana, was designed with an expected 25recent social media post. “Hopefully, President additional oil. to 30-year life span and intended only to be Trump keeps his word and fills the SPR after “A swap could occur for a variety of reasons, used during severe market disruptions. this conflict.” such as when a refinery needs oils during an Now at 50-plus years old, the SPR has been President Gerald Ford authorized the emergency to keep running,” Tulane Energy Inused dozens of times, and as of August held creation of the SPR in 1975 as a national stitute Associate Director Eric Smith says. “In only about 290 million barrels in total, which is insurance policy, of sorts, not long after Arab that case, whatever they take out must be put near a record low. As a result, industry insiders members of OPEC cut off oil supplies to the back into the SPR, with an additional amount say, age and over-use are catching up to all four U.S., causing oil prices to quadruple. The as the fee.” sites—Bayou Choctaw and West Hackberry federal government subsequently chose massive in Louisiana and Big Hill and Bryan Mound in underground salt domes for their location beNOT A MARKET MANIPULATOR Texas. cause salt and oil don’t mix, thereby providing a The underlying problem is that the SPR After the U.S. government began storing secure, low-cost containment method. is being used in a manner inconsistent with crude oil there in 1977, inventories steadily Oil for the SPR is acquired by the federits purpose. “Engineers designed the SPR grew to an all-time peak of over 726 million al government through either an outright caverns for strategic storage,” says Smith, who barrels in 2011, but the reserve was previously served on the board heavily tapped in 2022 following of DynMcDermott Petroleum THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY, VIA THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to help Operations Co., the JV contracstabilize extreme market prices. In tor responsible for managing the wake of other major drawdowns, the SPR from 1993 to 2014. “It inventory levels have dropped signifiwas never intended to manipucantly. late prices. That said, presidents and members of Congress have “There’s still a lot of oil, but it’s proved incapable of living under a lot less than it used to be,” says those restraints.” Louisiana Oil & Gas Association Instead, they’ve repeatedly President Mike Moncla, whose Latapped into the SPR to improve fayette business—Moncla Workover gasoline prices during election & Drilling—has held a contract in years. “The problem with that tacthe SPR for more than a decade. Retic is that it assumes that there’s cently, the company received a call for an infinite supply of refining caan “emergency selloff,” during which pacity to react to that extra crude they worked 24 hours a day for eight IN CASE OF EMERGENCY: A section of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve facility in West Hackberry, Louisiana. … and it just isn’t there,” he adds. days to offload 172 million barrels of

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10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 79

FOCUS: ENERGY

INSIDE THE CAVERNS How exactly do the Strategic Petroleum Reserve caverns work? Tulane Energy Institute Associate Director Eric Smith describes them as “big, hollowed-out 50-story Coke bottles” that begin at 2,000 feet below the surface. “The caverns were created with a process using super-heated water to dissolve the salt, and they remain pressurized at all times with either natural gas or oil,” Smith says. No matter how low the SPR reserves get, a protective cushion of oil always remains. “When it’s empty it’s not really empty. There’s a cushion level of oil there to protect the intake pipe in each cavern.”

Issue Date: Fall 2026 Ad proof #7 • Please respond by e-mail or phone with your approval or minor revisions. • AD WILL RUN AS IS unless approval or final revisions are received within 24 hrs from receipt of this proof. A shorter timeframe will apply for tight deadlines. • Additional revisions must be requested and may be subject to production fees.

“In fact, it’s the opposite today. In many ways, our refining capacity has been reduced. As a result, we’re draining our strategic reserves with the intent of lowering gasoline prices, and it’s not happening.” There’s also a very real danger that the caverns could de-stabilize over time due to over-use. Even though salt caverns are typically dependable locations for storage, “operators use fresh water in the process of removing the oil and if you use the same cavern over and over, eventually they could erode one cavern into the one next door,” Smith says. While an SPR salt dome has never experienced a catastrophic structural collapse, there have been localized incidences of roof degradation, minor salt falls and surface sinkholes. For now, the caverns are in “good shape for their age, and they haven’t been grossly undermaintained,” but the aging SPR has required billions of dollars in modern repairs and maintenance by the Department of Energy over the years. Greg Upton, executive director of the LSU Center for Energy Studies in Baton Rouge, agrees that the SPR has value as a remedy for supply disrup-

tions—such as the current conflict in Iran—“but in my view, using it to influence global prices is probably not going to be effective.” While it makes sense from a business perspective to sell the oil in the reserve when prices are high and buy it when prices are low, there’s a concerning tradeoff, Upton notes: “What if there’s a major supply disruption and we don’t have the reserves that we need?” In August, Trump said that oil from a recently struck deal with Venezuela would be used to replenish the SPR, but it’s unclear how quickly the Venezuela deal could provide oil for the reserve, as it will require significant investment and infrastructure work before production can rise substantially. “There’s a lot of potential for Venezuelan crude (imports) to increase significantly, but that’s going to take several years to ramp up,” Upton says. Ironically, when the federal government replenishes oil in the SPR, it often has a counterproductive effect, as it drives the prices higher due to the increased demand. “Prices need to be lower for that to happen,” Tulane’s Smith says, “but it also requires that the

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FOCUS: ENERGY

CRUDE MILESTONES When wars, hurricanes and supply disruptions threaten the flow of oil, the U.S. taps its Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Louisiana’s underground stockpiles have played a key role in those drawdowns, helping steady supplies during some of the nation’s most consequential energy crises.

1977 1975 The U.S. creates the Strategic Petroleum Reserve following an Arab oil embargo to protect the nation from sudden fuel shortages, then chooses locations in Louisiana and Texas due to the availability of subsurface salt formations.

The federal government acquires its first underground storage sites in Louisiana – West Hackberry in Cameron Parish and Bayou Choctaw in Iberville Parish.

1980s Engineers carve massive storage caverns out of Louisiana’s natural salt domes, which keep crude oil secure and stable. West Hackberry becomes operational in 1988 and Bayou Choctaw in 1987.

2005

2011

Storm damage caused by Hurricane Katrina to regional refineries and platforms led to emergency drawdowns to stabilize disrupted local and national supplies.

Oil drawdown initiated to alleviate supply disruptions in Libya and other countries.

The SPR system peaks at 726 million barrels of stored oil.

2022 Significant oil drawdown initiated following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

1991 Simultaneously with the initiation of Operation Desert Storm, an emergency release was authorized to minimize world oil market disruptions.

AUGUST 2026 SPR hits a near-record low of 290 million barrels due to additional drawdowns, in part caused by the conflict in Iran but also to manipulate gas prices.

SOURCE: ENERGY.GOV

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ON THE FRONT LINES There’s little doubt that the SPR has been impactful to Louisiana over the years. The system is managed from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Project Management Office in Elmwood, a suburb of New Orleans, and local contractors and suppliers have serviced the SPR since its creation. LOGA’s Moncla has played a critical role there since the oil bust in 2015. That’s when his company took a long shot and bid on the Department of Energy contract for SPR’s workover rig services. Since the original contract was signed, their contract has been renewed twice—each time for three years with two consecutive one-year extensions. As a workover contractor, Moncla only works on existing wells. Currently, there are 117 wells and 61 caverns across the four SPR sites, each with its own maintenance schedule to follow. The U.S. government operates a single rig and Moncla provides the labor. “Most of our work is workovers, completions, remediations etc.,” he says.

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“We follow orders out there; it could be on an injection well or a withdrawal well, or we could be performing a cavern integrity test or

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FOCUS: ENERGY

DON KADAIR

“Rather than chasing what the Joneses are doing someplace else, we’re focusing on what our core strengths are right here.” MIKE MAZZOLA, executive director, Future Use of Energy in Louisiana

The long game for Louisiana energy

By SAM BARNES

FUEL’s five-year strategy aims to turn the state’s existing advantages into new technologies, companies and career opportunities.

ouisiana has no shortage of energy expertise, industrial assets or promising research. The harder challenge has been connecting them—turning discoveries in the lab into commercial technologies, preparing workers for the jobs those technologies create and giving emerging companies a place to prove they can operate at industrial scale. FUEL is positioning itself as the connective tissue. Since securing a $160 million, 10-year award from the National Science Foundation in 2024, the LSU-based organization has evolved into far more than

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a source of early-stage capital. It is investing in workforce development, building specialized innovation infrastructure and creating pathways for Louisiana scientists and engineers to move their research from the university into the marketplace. The broader reach is not a departure from FUEL’s original mission. It is the execution of a five-year strategic plan built around 12 goals and overseen by a governing board that includes industry representatives, investors, academic leaders and state officials. “If I were a preacher, FUEL’s strategic implementation plan

would be my Bible,” says Mike Mazzola, executive director of Future Use of Energy in Louisiana. “Our board maintains that plan to ensure we’re achieving our purpose.” That purpose is ambitious: Capitalize on Louisiana’s existing industrial strengths and position the state as a leader in energy innovation, carbon management and industrial decarbonization. For energy executives, the potential payoff extends beyond promising technology. FUEL is attempting to assemble the talent, facilities, capital and industry partnerships needed to move new ideas toward commercial de-

ployment—and encourage more Louisiana researchers to build companies in the state. “We want to take advantage of the resources we already have here,” Mazzola says. “Rather than chasing what the Joneses are doing someplace else, we’re focusing on what our core strengths are right here.” Increasingly, that means connecting workforce training, research, startup support and industrial deployment as parts of a larger strategy. FUEL is supporting technical education, helping researchers become entrepreneurs, giving startups access to specialized facilities 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 85

FOCUS: ENERGY and pairing emerging technologies with industrial sites capable of testing and deploying them. Its latest initiatives offer a clearer picture of how those pieces are beginning to come together.

BUILDING THE WORKFORCE PIPELINE One of the clearest examples is FUEL’s growing investment in the workers who will be needed to support Louisiana’s evolving energy sector. In August, the organization announced a one-year, $800,000 investment in the Louisiana Community and Technical Colleges system to enhance and expand

86 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

energy-related programs at community colleges across the state. It is the first installment in what is expected to become a multiyear commitment. Through the partnership, FUEL and LCTC plan to build on established best practices and advance energy education and workforce development statewide. The initiative follows earlier FUEL investments in the field, including a $100,000 FUEL Scale award to River Parishes Community College in 2025. The latest funding is intended in part to strengthen programs serving nontraditional learners pursuing degrees or certifications

relevant to the energy industry. “Louisiana’s energy sector supports a wide range of middle-skill jobs and career paths that create wealth-building opportunities for Louisiana residents,” Lacy McManus, FUEL’s director of workforce development, said in a press release. “These in-demand roles, however, require advanced technical training and programs aligned with industry needs.”

THE INNOVATION INFRASTRUCTURE A trained workforce is only one piece of the equation. Emerging energy companies also need specialized facilities

where they can develop, test and scale capital-intensive technologies in real-world environments. FUEL moved to address that need in 2025 by investing in Newlab, a New Orleans innovation hub designed to help startups scale technologies focused on clean energy, carbon management and maritime innovation. Newlab currently operates from temporary facilities in the Garden District. In March 2027, it is expected to move into a $50 million permanent facility at the Bywater redevelopment site, funded by the city of New Orleans, Louisiana Economic Development, Greater New Orleans Inc. and FUEL.

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FOCUS: ENERGY

“FUEL is more than a funding source for us,” says Cameron Poole, Newlab New Orleans’ director of strategy. “We’re meeting with them almost every week, since a lot of their programs sync with our needs.” The Newlab facilities are intended to provide a platform for technologies that could potentially transform some of Louisiana’s key industries. That makes the hub’s work a natural fit with FUEL’s broader strategy. “FUEL’s North Star is carbon management and utilization, and that’s a huge focus of ours,” Poole says. “We’re aligning these programs so our startups can meaningfully leverage their initiatives.” Much of Newlab’s work so far has centered on carbon management and energy production. The organization is building the specialized laboratory infrastructure startups need to prototype, construct and deploy their technologies in real-world environments. Some of those connections are already taking shape. Shell and Japan-based JERA Co. Inc. are each using Newlab to landscape, validate and deploy emerging technologies. “A lot of these technologies are very capital intensive, and we have a global network of investors and regional partners that can help,” Poole says. “What’s exciting is that we’re starting to see some of the startups already receive startup equity.” FUEL is also creating a pathway for Louisiana scientists and engineers to develop and commercialize their research without leaving the state. In May, the organization announced the Louisiana Science Innovator BRIDGE program, a joint initiative with Washington, D.C.-based Activate. The program aims to build a connected hard-tech and carbon-tech innovation workforce across Louisiana by providing the entrepreneurial infrastructure needed to turn research into new energy companies. “It’s a super important component to our plan,” Mazzola says. “We’ll be encouraging many of our graduates to use their research to start a company here rather than elsewhere.” FUEL is currently searching for a coordinator to run the program.

CREATING AN ECOSYSTEM OF STARTUPS The growing network of early-stage companies in FUEL’s orbit offers one of the most tangible measures of the strategy’s progress. Its startup ecosystem currently includes 14 companies. In May, FUEL announced a second round of proof-of-concept funding, awarding a combined $1.2 million to seven early-stage companies. The funding is intended to help close the gap between early research and market entry.

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How do you promote diversity, equity and inclusion? When I began working in this male-dominated industry in 1985, there weren’t many women in the industrial space, and it was difficult trying to develop long-term partnerships. But because of my determination and drive to succeed, my company has done just that. It has been very important to me to promote women in this highly competitive industry. Because of the hardships and challenges I faced in the 1980s, I felt the need to promote more women into industrial sales and, ultimately, leadership positions. But overall, I mostly enjoy working with a group of diverse people and encouraging them to strive for success.

Why is this important to your organization? It takes workers with different backgrounds and interests to come together as a winning team in the steel industry. We have college graduates, high school graduates and some that never finished high school, many of whom have been trained and promoted to higher paying positions.

What has been most rewarding about the experience? In the past 41 years, I have seen the inclusion of more women in the industrial space. Women are now operators, welders, engineers, etc. It makes me happy to see how much better, and fairer, the job market has become. It’s particularly rewarding to get positive feedback from clients about how courteous and prompt our deliveries are, and how wellmannered our warehouse staff is. I feel the overall diversity of our work culture has brought out the best in our employees and makes us more approachable to our customers.

CHERYL GERBER

TESTING, TESTING: FUEL invested in Newlab, a New Orleans innovation hub designed to help startups scale technologies focused on clean energy, carbon management and maritime innovation that will move into a $50 million permanent facility at the Bywater redevelopment site in March. From left, the Newlab team: Danielle Wiggins, Technical Program Manager Lukas Cepkauskas, Director of Strategy Cam Poole, and Sydney Preseton.

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(225) 749-3553 | BRECHEENPIPEANDSTEEL.COM

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 87

FOCUS: ENERGY One recipient, Tickfaw-based Waste to Energy Systems, is using its $200,000 award to move a gasification technology beyond the research-and-development phase. The system converts biomass into heat and electricity using a single piece of equipment. But the funding also comes with an additional objective: FUEL wants Waste to Energy to determine whether the technology can produce hydrogen from the resulting gas. “They want us to see if we can strip hydrogen out of the gas,” says Alissa Mahoney, the company’s chief operating officer. “It’s a better option than pulling hydrogen out of air or water, and we’re not using any natural resources in the process.” The idea originated more than a decade ago with Mahoney’s father, Albany Woodworks founder Richard Woods. His sawmill reclaims heart pine and cypress and remills the wood into a variety of products. The operation also generated

a recurring challenge: a pile of sawdust. “We’d always had a pile of sawdust sitting around and he has always been a bit of an environmentalist, so he started thinking of ways to put it to use,” Mahoney says. Woods built a small gasification system in 2010 and gradually increased its size over the years that followed. Mahoney now hopes the FUEL award will help move the technology out of R&D and into a real-world application. Waste to Energy has purchased a syngas analyzer, enabling the company to optimize its processes. Initial testing indicates that the system has successfully stripped hydrogen from the gas, and the company is seeking third-party validation of the results. “With any new technology, convincing people to change the way they think about things is the biggest challenge,” Mahoney says. “This funding has significantly helped us go down that path. We hope to walk away from this with

a third-party validated sales package that gives customers reliable data.” FUEL’s support has extended beyond the financial award. It also connected Waste to Energy with StartUP Northshore in Covington and Scale Up! Louisiana for assistance with business development. “We realized there was some room for improvement on the business side, and that we needed to shift our thinking and how we approached things,” Mahoney says.

CONNECTING INNOVATION WITH INDUSTRY Perhaps the clearest illustration of FUEL’s connective role can be found at Cornerstone Energy Park in Waggaman, where an established industrial site could provide emerging technologies with the assets and feedstocks needed to move toward commercialization. Jacques Byrd, vice president of site development at Cornerstone Chemical Co., which owns the park, says FUEL’s emphasis on

carbon utilization aligns with Cornerstone’s long-term vision. The company wants the park to become an integrated, sustainable industrial hub that advances green energy innovation while strengthening domestic manufacturing supply chains. The 800-acre industrial park has 180 available acres, excess utility capacity and access to rail and water. “We plug in nicely with their model,” Byrd says. “Our ammonia plant provides an abundant source of pure CO2,” he says, “and we already utilize some of it in our urea and melamine manufacturing.” “FUEL was happy to see carbon utilization already happening in their backyard.” FUEL is now connecting Cornerstone with developers of late-stage technologies seeking to commercialize their work and needing access to carbon or other industrial feedstocks. “We’re also the primary recipients of FUEL funding for a study into utilizing carbon to

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FOCUS: ENERGY make syngas,” Byrd says. “We’ll disburse a portion of that funding to a technology provider to build out a syngas facility at our plant, and from there we could go in any number of directions.” It is the kind of connection FUEL’s strategy is designed to create: pairing an emerging technology with funding, an industrial partner, essential feedstocks and a site where it can be put to work. Taken together, those efforts reveal the larger ambition behind FUEL’s expanding portfolio—not simply to fund energy innovation, but to build the Louisiana ecosystem needed to carry it from research to commercial reality.

“They want us to see if we can strip hydrogen out of the gas.”

1012industryreport.com

CHERYL GERBER

AISSA MAHONEY, COO, Waste to Energy Systems in Tickfaw

10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026 89

CLOSING NOTES: PROJECT MAPS

Project by project ($25M to $975M)

33 31

Active Louisiana industrial projects announced or proposed, with projected capital investment of $25 million to $975 million. Second line shows projected capital investment and direct new jobs. List is representative, not complete; statuses and costs change frequently.

CADDO

4 1

Element USA rare earth and critical minterals refining factory $850M | 200 jobs Location: St. John Parish Status: Construction begins 2027

11 CHS and OCP North America Fertilizer Plant $450M | 60 jobs Location: Cornerstone Energy Park, Waggaman Status: In progress

AtmosClear carbon capture facility $800M | 75 jobs Location: Port of Greater Baton Rouge Status: Construction 2026; commercial operations 2029

12 Monarch Energy green hydrogen $426M | 44 jobs Location: Donaldsonville Status: FID 2025

Project Cypress carbon capture hub $603M | 100 jobs Location: Southwest Louisiana Status: Pending

13 Koura Global retrofit $400M | N/A Location: St. Gabriel Status: Operational in 2026

Southern Spirit transmission poject/HVDC converter station + transmission line $600M | N/A Location: DeSoto Parish Status: Completion 2029; operational 2032

Westlake Chemicals expansion $512M | 12 jobs Location: Geismar Status: Pending

UBE Corp. lithium ion battery components $500M | 60 jobs Location: Waggaman Cornerstone Complex Status: Operations early 2027

APM Container Terminal $500M | 56 jobs Location: Plaquemines Parish Status: Pending

Entergy upgrades: Commodore Substation + others $498M | N/A Location: Iberville Parish, etc. Status: Pending

Element 25 manganese sulfate monphydrete production $480M | N/A Location: Pending Status: Pending

10 Louisiana Gateway Port/ Plaquemines Port & Harbor Terminal expansion $467M | N/A Location: West Bank of the Mississippi River, Plaquemines Parish Status: In progress 90 10/12 INDUSTRY REPORT • FALL 2026

14 Linde Air separation unit $400M | N/A Location: St. Gabriel Status: Under construction 15 CapChem Technology rechargeable battery plant $350M | 95 jobs Location: St. Gabriel Status: Construction underway

16 Saronic Technologies Franklin shipyard expansion $300M | 1,500 jobs Location: St. Mary Parish Status: Operational in 2027 17 River Parish Sequestration CCS project $250M | N/A Location: RiverPlex MegaPark, Ascension Parish Status: Construction 2028 18 Air Liquide air separation unit $200M | N/A Location: St. Charles Parish Status: Completion in 2027

19 Shell catalyst plant output boost $121.7M | 17 jobs Location: Port Allen Status: Under construction 20 Hood Industries mill upgrade $118M | N/A Location: St. Francisville Status: In progress

BLUE = ADDED SINCE PREVIOUS EDITION

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21 Green Fuels Operating PC net zero emissions technology factory $110M | 60 jobs Location: Acadia Parish Status: Construction fall 2025; completion 2026 22 Exxon Mobil facility upgrades for isopropyl alcohol production $100M | N/A Location: Baton Rouge Status: Completion in 2027

28 John H. Carter/ControlWorx Center for Industrial Excellence $69M | 175 jobs Location: Gonzales Status: Operational in early 2027 29 Placid Refining Headquarters Port Allen facility modernization $66M | 20 new jobs; 215 retained jobs Location: Baton Rouge, Port Allen Status: 2027 completion

24 Heirloom direct air capture $100M | 100 jobs Location: Port of Caddo-Bossier Status: Under construction