# Rapides Parish, Louisiana: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy

Home to Alexandria, Pineville and Ball

Rapides Parish hosts some of the generating capacity Louisiana runs on. Rapides Parish is home to Alexandria, Pineville, Ball and Woodworth. 49 MW of new generation is planned here across 6 units, led by Rye Development (other technologies). Its power plants have 1,772 MW of capacity, 40% of it petroleum, the 8th largest fleet in Louisiana. Construction employs 3,398, up 8.2% since 2019. Unemployment was 3.5% in August 2026, against 4.7% in 2019.

49 MW
of new generation planned here, other technologies leading

1,772 MW
of operating power plants, mostly petroleum

11.05¢
per kWh for Entergy Louisiana LLC residential customers, 2024

## Cities and towns in Rapides Parish

Rapides Parish is home to Alexandria, Pineville, Ball and Woodworth.

Alexandria42,938 residents
Pineville13,967 residents
Ball3,793 residents
Woodworth1,758 residents
Glenmora1,040 residents
Boyce864 residents
Lecompte822 residents
Forest Hill614 residents
Cheneyville441 residents
McNary195 residents

Unincorporated communities (governed by the county): Deville, Echo.

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 Rapides Parish

| Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Louisiana |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (2020 → 2025) | 129,655 | 125,877 | ▼ 2.9% | 13th of 64 by size |
| Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 56,599 | 56,850 | ▲ 0.4% | 28th of 64 by growth |
| Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $41,706 | $53,620 | ▲ 28.6% | — |
| Construction jobs (2019 → 2025) | 3,141 | 3,398 | ▲ 8.2% | 24th of 43 by growth |
| Power line construction jobs (2019 → 2025) | 582 | 811 | ▲ 39.3% | — |
| Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 4.7% | 3.5% | ▼ 1.2pts | — |
| Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 0 MW |  | — |
| Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 0 MW |  | — |
| Planned generation (Aug 2026) | — | 49 MW | 3% of today's fleet | 11th of 14 by size |

Electrical contractors employ 264, at an average $59,345 a year. Entergy Louisiana LLC is the largest utility serving Rapides 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. Employers here counted 56,850 jobs in 2025, up 0.4% from 2019. 125,877 people live here, down 2.9% since 2020.

## Who powers Rapides Parish

### Utilities with service territory in Rapides 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% |
| City of Alexandria - (LA) | Municipal | Bundled | 19,541 | 11.10¢ | 56% |
| Concordia Electric Coop, Inc | Cooperative | Bundled | 11,879 | 13.36¢ | 24% |
| Town of Boyce | — | — | — | — | — |

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 

| Technology | Capacity | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Petroleum | 704 MW | 40% |
| Coal | 558 MW | 31% |
| Natural gas | 511 MW | 29% |

| Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brame Energy Center | Cleco Power LLC | Natural gas | 1,707 MW | 1975 |
| D G Hunter | City of Alexandria - (LA) | Natural gas | 65 MW | 2016 |

### Planned generation 

| Plant | Technology | MW | Status | Year | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overton Hydroelectric Project | Conventional Hydroelectric | 8 MW | Planned, approvals not started | 2028 | Rye Development |
| Overton Hydroelectric Project | Conventional Hydroelectric | 8 MW | Planned, approvals not started | 2028 | Rye Development |
| Overton Hydroelectric Project | Conventional Hydroelectric | 8 MW | Planned, approvals not started | 2028 | Rye Development |
| Overton Hydroelectric Project | Conventional Hydroelectric | 8 MW | Planned, approvals not started | 2028 | Rye Development |
| Overton Hydroelectric Project | Conventional Hydroelectric | 8 MW | Planned, approvals not started | 2028 | Rye Development |
| Overton Hydroelectric Project | Conventional Hydroelectric | 8 MW | Planned, approvals not started | 2028 | Rye Development |

## The Rapides Parish labor market

| Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| All industries | 56,850 | $53,620 | 1.00 |
| Construction | 3,398 | $73,619 | 1.13 |
| Electrical contractors | 264 | $59,345 | 0.64 |
| Power and communication line construction | 811 | $100,744 | 8.83 |

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 Rapides Parish

No data center, local measure or delayed project is on record in Rapides Parish. Louisiana has 3 local measures on record statewide.

## Rapides Parish and its neighbors

Of the 7 counties that border Rapides Parish, Evangeline Parish 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rapides Parish | 125,877 | ▲ 0.4% | 1,772 MW | 49 MW | — | — |
| Allen Parish](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/allen-parish) | 22,672 | ▼ 5.5% | 143 MW | — | — | — |
| Avoyelles Parish](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/avoyelles-parish) | 37,941 | ▼ 6.3% | — | — | — | — |
| Evangeline Parish](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/evangeline-parish) | 31,980 | ▲ 6.1% | 923 MW | — | — | — |
| Grant Parish](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/grant-parish) | 22,075 | ▼ 0.8% | — | — | — | — |
| LaSalle Parish](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/lasalle-parish) | 15,154 | ▼ 1.1% | — | — | — | — |
| Natchitoches Parish](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/natchitoches-parish) | 36,089 | ▲ 5.7% | 79 MW | — | — | — |
| Vernon Parish](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/vernon-parish) | 45,091 | ▼ 1.3% | 10 MW | — | — | — |

## More of Louisiana

[All Louisiana countiesThe state power page and county mapOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana)[Vernon Parish45,091 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/vernon-parish)[Avoyelles Parish37,941 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/avoyelles-parish)[Natchitoches Parish36,089 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/natchitoches-parish)[Evangeline Parish31,980 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/evangeline-parish)[Allen Parish22,672 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/allen-parish)

## Rapides Parish, answered from the record

### Who provides electricity in Rapides Parish, Louisiana?

6 utilities have service territory in Rapides Parish in the EIA-861 2024 report: Entergy Louisiana LLC, Cleco Power LLC, Beauregard Electric Coop, Inc, City of Alexandria - (LA). The largest, Entergy Louisiana LLC, charged residential customers 11.05¢/kWh on average in 2024.

### What county is Alexandria, LA in?

Alexandria is in Rapides Parish, Louisiana. About 42,938 people live there (2025 Census estimate).

### What county is Pineville, LA in?

Pineville is in Rapides Parish, Louisiana. About 13,967 people live there (2025 Census estimate).

### What power plants are in Rapides Parish?

2 operating plants with 1,772 MW of capacity. The largest is Brame Energy Center (1,707 MW, natural gas).

### How much new power is planned in Rapides Parish?

49 MW across 6 units in the August 2026 EIA-860M inventory, 0 MW of it under construction or built. The largest owner is Rye Development.

### Are there data centers in Rapides Parish?

The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Rapides Parish.

### Is Rapides Parish adding jobs?

Employers counted 56,850 jobs in 2025 against 56,599 in 2019 (+0.4%, BLS QCEW). Construction went from 3,141 to 3,398.

### Does Rapides Parish have a data center moratorium?

No county-level measure is on record for Rapides Parish. Louisiana has 3 local measures statewide, listed on the state page.

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Canonical: https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/louisiana/rapides-parish
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/).