Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy
Home to Lake Charles, Sulphur and Westlake
Calcasieu Parish hosts some of the generating capacity Louisiana runs on. Calcasieu Parish is home to Lake Charles, Sulphur, Westlake and Iowa. 819 MW of new generation is planned here across 2 units, led by Entergy Louisiana LLC (natural gas), the 4th largest pipeline among Louisiana's counties. Its power plants have 4,016 MW of capacity, 71% of it natural gas, the 2nd largest fleet in Louisiana. 1,000 MW of that came online in 2019 or later, mostly natural gas. Next door, Orange County, Texas, has 1,306 MW of planned generation.
Cities and towns in Calcasieu Parish
Calcasieu Parish is home to Lake Charles, Sulphur, Westlake and Iowa.
Unincorporated communities (governed by the county): Carlyss, Gillis, Hayes, Moss Bluff, Prien, Starks.
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 Calcasieu Parish
1st = the most. Ranks cover counties with a value on record.
| Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Louisiana |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (2020 → 2025) | 216,474 | 208,466 | ▼ 3.7% | 7th of 64 by size |
| Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 101,706 | 89,310 | ▼ 12.2% | 61st of 64 by growth |
| Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $52,143 | $63,063 | ▲ 20.9% | — |
| Electrical contractor jobs (2019 → 2025) | 2,263 | 864 | ▼ 61.8% | — |
| Power line construction jobs (2019 → 2025) | 152 | 174 | ▲ 14.5% | — |
| Data processing and hosting jobs (2019 → 2025) | 15 | 30 | ▲ 100.0% | — |
| Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 4.4% | 3.8% | ▼ 0.6pts | — |
| Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 1,000 MW | — | |
| Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 0 MW | — | |
| Planned generation (Aug 2026) | — | 819 MW | 20% of today's fleet | 4th of 14 by size |
Employers here counted 89,310 jobs in 2025, down 12.2% from 2019. Unemployment was 3.8% in August 2026, against 4.4% in 2019. Entergy Louisiana LLC is the largest utility serving Calcasieu Parish, one of 6 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 11.05¢/kWh in 2024, below the 11.88¢ median for Louisiana utilities. 208,466 people live here, down 3.7% since 2020, 7th of 64 Louisiana counties by population. Electrical contractors employ 864, down 61.8% since 2019 against down 2.9% statewide, at an average $69,817 a year.
Who powers Calcasieu Parish
Net change in operating capacity since 2019: +1,000 MW. Colors follow the fuel legend above.
Utilities with service territory in Calcasieu Parish
| Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entergy Louisiana LLC | Investor Owned | Bundled | 957,522 | 11.05¢ | 20% |
| Cleco Power LLC | Investor Owned | Bundled | 251,927 | 12.33¢ | 32% |
| Beauregard Electric Coop, Inc | Cooperative | Bundled | 40,051 | 13.70¢ | 12% |
| Jefferson Davis Elec Coop, Inc | Cooperative | Bundled | 9,127 | 14.05¢ | 16% |
| Town of Vinton - (LA) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Vinton Public Power Authority | Political Subdivision | Bundled | — | — | 0% |
Customer counts, prices and sales shares cover each utility's whole system in the state, not only this county. Commercial sales include data centers.
Operating power plants 12
| Technology | Capacity | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 2,836 MW | 71% |
| Coal | 615 MW | 15% |
| Other technologies | 338 MW | 8% |
| Petroleum | 227 MW | 6% |
| Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R S Nelson | Entergy Louisiana LLC | Petroleum | 1,434 MW | 1959 |
| Lake Charles Power | Entergy Louisiana LLC | Natural gas | 1,000 MW | 2020 |
| RS Cogen | Westlake 2 US LLC | Natural gas | 493 MW | 2002 |
| Calcasieu | Entergy Louisiana LLC | Natural gas | 359 MW | 2000 |
| PPG Powerhouse C | Westlake 2 US LLC | Natural gas | 358 MW | 1977 |
| PPG Riverside | Westlake 2 US LLC | Other technologies | 162 MW | 1947 |
Planned generation 2
| Plant | Technology | MW | Status | Year | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Westlake Power Station | Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle | 478 MW | Planned, approvals not started | 2030 | Entergy Louisiana LLC |
| Westlake Power Station | Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle | 342 MW | Planned, approvals not started | 2030 | Entergy Louisiana LLC |
The Calcasieu Parish labor market
| Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| All industries | 89,310 | $63,063 | 1.00 |
| Electrical contractors | 864 | $69,817 | 1.34 |
| Power and communication line construction | 174 | $101,829 | 1.21 |
| Data processing and hosting | 30 | $86,285 | 0.11 |
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 Calcasieu Parish
No data center, local measure or delayed project is on record in Calcasieu Parish. Louisiana has 3 local measures on record statewide.
Calcasieu Parish and its neighbors
Of the 5 counties that border Calcasieu Parish, Orange 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calcasieu Parish | 208,466 | ▼ 12.2% | 4,016 MW | 819 MW | — | — |
| Beauregard Parish | 36,673 | ▲ 7.5% | 62 MW | 300 MW | — | — |
| Cameron Parish | 4,718 | ▼ 49.5% | — | — | — | — |
| Jefferson Davis Parish | 31,471 | ▼ 4.6% | — | — | — | — |
| Newton County TX | 11,954 | ▼ 4.2% | 1,515 MW | — | — | — |
| Orange County TX | 86,266 | ▲ 10.9% | 2,455 MW | 1,306 MW | — | — |
More of Louisiana
Calcasieu Parish, answered from the record
Who provides electricity in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana?
6 utilities have service territory in Calcasieu Parish in the EIA-861 2024 report: Entergy Louisiana LLC, Cleco Power LLC, Beauregard Electric Coop, Inc, Jefferson Davis Elec Coop, Inc. The largest, Entergy Louisiana LLC, charged residential customers 11.05¢/kWh on average in 2024.
What county is Lake Charles, LA in?
Lake Charles is in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana. About 82,676 people live there (2025 Census estimate).
What county is Sulphur, LA in?
Sulphur is in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana. About 20,492 people live there (2025 Census estimate).
What power plants are in Calcasieu Parish?
12 operating plants with 4,016 MW of capacity. The largest is R S Nelson (1,434 MW, petroleum).
How much new power is planned in Calcasieu Parish?
819 MW across 2 units in the August 2026 EIA-860M inventory, 0 MW of it under construction or built. The largest owner is Entergy Louisiana LLC.
Are there data centers in Calcasieu Parish?
The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Calcasieu Parish. The nearest activity on record is next door in Orange County.
Is Calcasieu Parish adding jobs?
Employers counted 89,310 jobs in 2025 against 101,706 in 2019 (-12.2%, BLS QCEW).
Does Calcasieu Parish have a data center moratorium?
No county-level measure is on record for Calcasieu Parish. Louisiana has 3 local measures statewide, listed on the state page.