Entergy files request to build two battery storage systems as part of West Memphis Google data center expansion
Entergy Arkansas has asked the Arkansas Public Service Commission for approval to build two battery storage facilities supporting Google's expanding data center campus in West Memphis. The projects, estimated to cost $550.6 million, would provide 350 megawatts of storage and are expected to be funded by Google payments without increasing costs for other Entergy customers.
Entergy Arkansas has filed a request with the Arkansas Public Service Commission to build the 250-megawatt Driver BESS near Osceola and the 100-megawatt Jones Mill BESS in Hot Spring County. The two four-hour battery storage facilities, estimated to cost a combined $550.6 million, are intended to support Google's expansion of its $4 billion data center campus outside West Memphis and improve system-wide grid reliability.
Entergy said the facilities are expected to enter service by June 2028 and produce about $561 million in net customer benefits. Google has committed to cover the projects' construction costs, according to Entergy filings, while the utility said the associated revenues should offset the projects' costs for all customer classes. The request comes as Entergy and Google continue implementing a broader power-supply arrangement that includes the planned Cypress Solar project in Jefferson County.