Developer asks Mississippi PSC to exempt proposed power, data and chip complex

On March 2, 2026, a Ridgeland developer filed a Rule 24 petition with the Mississippi Public Service Commission asking for a declaration that a proposed 350-megawatt gas-fired power plant, an AI data center and a semiconductor fabrication complex are exempt from PSC regulation under the landlord-tenant exception in Mississippi Code §77-3-3(d)(iv), the petition in Docket 2026-AD-10 shows.

The filing contains no evidence that a plant, data center or fabrication facility exists; it lists no turbine orders, natural gas contracts, air permits, interconnection agreements, named tenants or off-take agreements, and describes potential investors as “ongoing and undisclosed groups in New York and San Francisco,” the petition says.

The petition relies on a statute originally written to allow landlords to include electricity in rent without becoming public utilities, the filing says. Magnolia Tribune reported that the developer is seeking to apply that landlord-tenant exception to a large merchant power plant and affiliated facilities.

Magnolia Tribune reported background information on the developer, saying he previously worked at the Mississippi Development Authority, served as a state economic development director and leads PraCon Global Investment Group, which has developed local projects in Ridgeland. The Tribune reported the developer received a Vision Award in November 2025 and has ties to area political figures.

Utilities have responded with legal filings, and Magnolia Tribune reported that Entergy filed a brief that was two hours late on April 13 and that the developer moved to strike it on procedural grounds. The Tribune also cited state legislative changes and past utility-backed bills as context for the dispute and said the petition argues the complex would be off the grid — a claim the Tribune described as unusual given that most U.S. data centers maintain grid backup connections.

Source: Original Article