A new report looking at Amazon’s data center facilities in Mississippi argues the projects have likely already increased rates for residential customers in the state. Since 2024, the company has announced four data centers in the state, with locations in Ridgeland, Canton, Clinton and Vicksburg. Together, Amazon is looking to invest $25 billion into Mississippi, creating 2,000 jobs.
While state leaders have touted the immense economic impact of the projects — in terms of power grid investment, job creation and job training — Thursday’s report by Synapse Energy Economics Inc. estimates that the data center projects have already increased rates for Entergy Mississippi’s residential customers by $10.60 each month. Based on public utility filings, the researchers estimated the utility has charged residential customers in the state a total of about $38 million for data center investments as of March.
The report, commissioned by groups Earthjustice and Environmental Advocates Mississippi, stresses that the figure is an estimate because much of the information behind Entergy’s agreement with Amazon isn’t available to the public. But while it’s hard to nail down an exact amount, the authors are confident the projects have driven rates up.
”Based on, you know, all of the publicly available evidence, we are quite confident that rates have increased because of data center investments,” Ben Havumaki, one of the report’s authors, told Mississippi Today.
In 2024, the state Legislature passed Senate Bill 2001, which was signed into law, allowing Entergy and Amazon to skip through usual regulatory processes to expedite the company’s investment. Among several changes, lawmakers hid the company’s agreement with Entergy, the state’s largest power provider, from the public.
“(SB 2001) creates an unusually frictionless path for the utility to make investments on behalf of data centers,” said Havumaki, a principal associate with Synapse based in Massachusetts who studies utility regulations around the country.
Haley Fisackerly, president and chief executive officer of Entergy Mississippi, speaks during an announcement about an Amazon data center in Ridgeland on Thursday, April 9, 2026. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi TodayOne of the ways the law eased that path was by allowing Entergy to recover, through its rates, costs associated with the data center projects even before the facilities are running, he said.
“Normally, utilities make investments on their own dime, then they go before the regulatory commission and they make the case for the investment,” Havumaki added. “If the commission finds that it’s prudent, then (the utility) is permitted to recover that investment (through rates).
“That usually would occur in public with transparency and reasonable vetting from other parties. In this case, a lot of that is just shrouded in regulatory cover and secrecy.”
The state agency tasked with regulating utilities, including approval of spending and rate increases, is the three-member Mississippi Public Service Commission.
In a Thursday statement responding to the Synapse report, Entergy said its customers “are not subsidizing data centers — they’re benefitting from them.”
“Independent regulators in Mississippi, Arkansas, and Louisiana confirm that data centers are paying their fair share, plus additional benefits for customers,” the statement said. “And, the Trump administration has pointed to Entergy’s data center agreements as a success story for customers, in line with the White House’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge.”
Gov. Tate Reeves signs an Amazon beam during an announcement about an Amazon data center in Ridgeland on Thursday, April 9, 2026. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi TodayAmazon’s spending as a large customer allows Entergy to make needed grid improvements and in turn reduce power outages, the utility added.
“They are fully funding their infrastructure needs, and their presence helps keep bills affordable while supporting reliability improvements across the state,” Entergy said. “Customer confidentiality doesn’t reduce accountability. The facts are clear: Technology investment is making power in Mississippi more reliable, more affordable, and more competitive.”
While acknowledging an increase in rates, Entergy projects that by 2030 customers’ monthly bills will be 16%, or about $30, lower than they would be without Amazon’s investment. Entergy, though, has released limited data backing up those claims, citing trade secrets in its agreement with Amazon.
The utility announced its “Fair Share Plus” pledge in March, claiming the data center projects would lead to over $2 billion in savings for Mississippi ratepayers.
In its own statement to Mississippi Today, Amazon echoed that it’s paying its fair share.
“We pay the full cost of the power and infrastructure we use through long-term investments in transmission, substations, grid upgrades, and new energy generation that help strengthen the broader grid for everyone. We believe other large energy users should as well,” a spokesperson for the company wrote. “That’s why we work with utilities on long-term agreements and investments that modernize aging infrastructure to help maintain affordable, reliable power for homes, businesses, hospitals, and communities on the grid where we operate.”
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