# Sevier County, Arkansas: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy

Home to De Queen

No data center or power plant project is on record in Sevier County, but the national build-out still reaches it through its utility bill, its labor market and the projects next door. Sevier County is home to De Queen, Horatio and Lockesburg. Employers here counted 4,936 jobs in 2025, up 3.8% from 2019. Electrical contractors employ 3, at an average $23,330 a year. Unemployment was 3.0% in August 2026, against 3.6% in 2019. Southwestern Electric Power Co is the largest utility serving Sevier County, one of 3 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 11.53¢/kWh in 2024, below the 12.11¢ median for Arkansas utilities.

+3.8%
total jobs since 2019, now 4,936

11.53¢
per kWh for Southwestern Electric Power Co residential customers, 2024

15,758
residents, 2025

## Cities and towns in Sevier County

Sevier County is home to De Queen, Horatio and Lockesburg.

De Queen6,045 residents
Horatio907 residents
Lockesburg596 residents
Gillham155 residents
Ben Lomond137 residents

Residents are 2025 Census estimates for the part of each city, town or township inside this county. Census publishes no annual estimate for unincorporated communities.

## What changed in Sevier County

| Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Arkansas |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (2020 → 2025) | 15,778 | 15,758 | ▼ 0.1% | 49th of 75 by size |
| Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 4,756 | 4,936 | ▲ 3.8% | 22nd of 75 by growth |
| Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $34,020 | $45,097 | ▲ 32.6% | — |
| Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 3.6% | 3.0% | ▼ 0.6pts | — |

15,758 people live here, down 0.1% since 2020.

## Who powers Sevier County

### Utilities with service territory in Sevier County

| Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwestern Electric Power Co | Investor Owned | Bundled | 108,102 | 11.53¢ | 37% |
| Southwest Arkansas E C C | Cooperative | Bundled | 24,879 | 12.96¢ | 20% |
| Rich Mountain Elec Coop, Inc | — | — | — | — | — |

Customer counts, prices and sales shares cover each utility's whole system in the state, not only this county. Commercial sales include data centers.

No operating power plant is located in Sevier County in the EIA-860M inventory. Its power comes over the grid from plants elsewhere.

## The Sevier County labor market

| Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| All industries | 4,936 | $45,097 | 1.00 |
| Construction | 213 | $62,102 | 0.81 |
| Electrical contractors | 3 | $23,330 | 0.08 |

Concentration is the BLS location quotient: 1.0 means the industry holds the same share of local jobs as it does nationally. Industry rows count private employers; cells BLS suppresses are left out.

## Data centers and local rules in Sevier County

No data center, local measure or delayed project is on record in Sevier County. Arkansas has 13 local measures on record statewide.

## Sevier County and its neighbors

Of the 4 counties that border Sevier County, McCurtain County carries the most build-out activity: data centers, planned generation and operating plants combined.

[[[[

| County | Population | Jobs since 2019 | Operating MW | Planned MW | Data centers | Local measures |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sevier County | 15,758 | ▲ 3.8% | — | — | — | — |
| Howard County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/arkansas/howard-county) | 12,306 | ▼ 13.8% | 5 MW | — | — | — |
| Little River County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/arkansas/little-river-county) | 11,763 | ▼ 11.7% | 156 MW | — | — | — |
| McCurtain County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/oklahoma/mccurtain-county) OK | 30,744 | ▲ 11.5% | 168 MW | — | — | — |
| Polk County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/arkansas/polk-county) | 19,486 | ▼ 2.3% | 1 MW | — | — | — |

## More of Arkansas

[All Arkansas countiesThe state power page and county mapOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/arkansas)[Polk County19,486 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/arkansas/polk-county)[Howard County12,306 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/arkansas/howard-county)[Little River County11,763 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/arkansas/little-river-county)

## Sevier County, answered from the record

### Who provides electricity in Sevier County, Arkansas?

3 utilities have service territory in Sevier County in the EIA-861 2024 report: Southwestern Electric Power Co, Southwest Arkansas E C C, Rich Mountain Elec Coop, Inc. The largest, Southwestern Electric Power Co, charged residential customers 11.53¢/kWh on average in 2024.

### Are there data centers in Sevier County?

The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Sevier County.

### Is Sevier County adding jobs?

Employers counted 4,936 jobs in 2025 against 4,756 in 2019 (+3.8%, BLS QCEW).

### Does Sevier County have a data center moratorium?

No county-level measure is on record for Sevier County. Arkansas has 13 local measures statewide, listed on the state page.

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Canonical: https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/arkansas/sevier-county
Updated: 2026-10-08. Refreshed weekly by SAVRN from EIA, BLS, BEA, Census and the SAVRN trackers. License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
