Third Bridge 专家访谈Codex · 实盘不做把握 5/10
北京时间·🕒 发布 07-08 03:00:00时区推断·⟳ 抓取 07-10 16:51:31·⚡ 决策 07-11 00:33:41 +7h42m·108.6 天前
Third Bridge 专家访谈讨论 Cleco 为 Applied Digital 数据中心项目供电的监管与执行风险
这是一篇专家访谈性质的背景材料,核心内容是 Cleco 在路易斯安那承接数据中心大负荷项目的监管、NIMBY、费率和执行风险讨论,并非新增订单、审批结果或公司公告。
📄 原文Third Bridge 专家访谈↗ 原文
Cleco Power – Regulatory Scrutiny & Potential Limitations on Growth Investments
[[00:00:52]] What are your views on the key load growth opportunities for Cleco Power, given the Rapides Parish data ce…
不做 Applied Digital(APLD.US)
本条只是专家访谈对既有数据中心供电项目的监管和执行风险讨论,没有新增一手催化或可量化业绩增量,不能形成正期望交易。
展开详情(成交明细 / 研究档案 / 原文全文 / 决策记录链)
研究档案
🔎 新鲜度:最早出现 2026-07-07 · 扩散 low · price-in 风险 medium ↗
关键理由
- 这是一篇专家访谈性质的背景材料,核心内容是 Cleco 在路易斯安那承接数据中心大负荷项目的监管、NIMBY、费率和执行风险讨论,并非新增订单、审批结果或公司公告。
- 文中提到的 Delta Forge 1 和 Applied Digital 项目属于既有项目语境,访谈没有给出新的合同金额、投产节点、客户变化、监管批准或业绩增量。
- Cleco 本身不是可直接交易标的,Applied Digital 仅作为客户项目背景出现,无法形成对其收入、利润或估值的短周期明确增量判断。
主要风险
- 若后续出现 LPSC 正式批准、项目扩容、供电协议变更或 Applied Digital 官方披露商业进展,需要重新评估。
- 专家访谈可能反映机构关注点,但本条本身不是低扩散的一手催化。
原文全文
展开原文 · 34,161 字
[[00:00:52]]
What are your views on the key load growth opportunities for Cleco Power, given the Rapides Parish data centre project, otherwise called Delta Forge 1, which it is doing for Applied Digital?
[[00:01:08]]
From my perspective, and I think Cleco is somewhat similarly situated as most of the regulated utility companies in the Gulf South and beyond, frankly, in that the data centre operations and large load customers being attracted to that region, that's the most significant opportunity, I think, for them as well as others right now.
[[00:01:47]]
Is there anything you consider attractive for large loads such as Applied Digital for Cleco? What is special about the service area for those?
[[00:02:06]]
I think it's a couple of things. One is, from a price perspective, I think that makes the region generally attractive. I think in terms of there being less opposition to the data centre large load conversation in the Gulf South than in other places, that's attractive. Now with that being said, there are some headwinds there. Certainly, when you think about this broader conversation around affordability, that's a national conversation. The Gulf South is not immune to that. I think for a utility like a Cleco situated in a state like Louisiana, where there's pretty positive and favourable support from some of your key stakeholders, namely the governor, certain members of the commission and then the communities at large who I believe see significant economic development opportunities and growth opportunities from a municipal perspective, all of those things are favourable. Again, with that said, there is some opposition. The fact that affordability continues to dominate the political and to some… Certainly the political conversation, that's an issue that everybody is actively trying to work through.
[[00:03:59]]
How do you think about execution risks on the development and interconnection process for Delta Forge 1 for Cleco, given its scale of USD 3.6bn and 430MW? When we talk about a load of that size, would you be concerned if the company can execute on that?
[[00:04:26]]
Let me answer the question in a different way. I think that when it comes to execution risk for the significant capital-intensive investments that have to be made, it's not just Cleco that's having to be very thoughtful about that. It's everybody. Now for a company like Cleco, given the size that it is, a USD 3bn-plus investment, yes, you 100% have to worry about the execution risk on that. Then the other thing that complicates the matter even more beyond just the performance measure is the political environment and the regulatory environment around affordability. That has to continue to be managed. That's just not a Cleco issue, that's an industry issue that all goes into the execution risk bucket that you just asked about.
[[00:05:44]]
Do you see Nimby [not in my backyard] or local stakeholder risk for the projects? How do you think about whether that exists and whether it is material enough to kill or at least chill the project?
[[00:06:07]]
It absolutely exists. I think given where we are right now with so much activity taking place throughout the region at the same time, people are still trying to manage through some of those stakeholder engagement issues, and frankly, concerns that are out there. I suspect that you are probably going to see a more aggressive and coordinated communications campaign around educating the general public as well as regulators on what's real, what's not relative to the opportunity, with a large portion of that conversation being focused on the affordability component, and frankly, answering the central fundamental question of, are these data centres going to drive up cost for the average consumer. That right there is just central to all of the stakeholder engagement work that's being done and has to be done in order to position these projects for success today and into the future.
[[00:07:33]]
In what specific ways could you see Nimby-ism or local stakeholders getting in the way of the development of the project? Are there certain development stages where they have more ability to get in the way? Are they able to get in the way throughout the development cycle of the data centre regardless of what regulators and political parties say, assuming that they're in favour?
[[00:08:04]]
Good question. The most risk is always at the beginning and the approval process associated with these types of projects, which is why it's always helpful to get that stuff done, secured, out of the way as soon as possible, but risks remain throughout the course of these things and it's really more of a future-focused risk because you want to have this track record where, number one, you are attracting this type of development in the region, but then number two, you want to be successful in the execution of that such that you create an environment where more of this type of investment is focused and there's more of a demand within the tech companies or whoever the big customers are to come to this region of the country.
When you look at what's going on in the Northeast and other areas of the country, which… Data centre development isn't necessarily a new concept. It's getting noisy. It's getting harder. I spent a lot of time in Washington, DC, and that was just the mayoral race, and that race was really decided on affordability of electricity, because Pepco, DC, that area is market-driven PJM, that conversation immediately went to data centres being the driver of increased cost to customers. Now all of this is being discussed in the context of a political race. Facts don't always have to be directly factual, but that's the narrative that was out there that, again, has influenced the outcome of a race here and has put a lot of pressure on the Public Service Commission and other government leaders here in the District of Columbia. It's a real thing.
[[00:10:27]]
You characterised a lot of the development risk with the project we're discussing and with data centre projects more broadly being in the early or approval stage. What about beyond that stage? When actual interconnection, grid infrastructure, physical infrastructure, physical builds, etc, are being erected, can local stakeholders still have or pose much execution risk? Or would you consider the local stakeholder to be fairly limited in terms of its ability to freeze or kill development?
[[00:11:03]]
I think at that point, particularly in a region like Louisiana, with the politics being what they are there and beyond, that's just more of a desire on the part of communities to want to have development that changes the financial, economic fabric of the community. I definitely think that is a good thing. The bottom line is getting through that approval process, making sure that you are delivering on the commitments that you have made to your key stakeholders in terms of who will bear the actual cost, what are the dynamics of the deal that make sense and then communicating at the end of the day why this is ultimately a net benefit to the retail customer is all good stuff. I think they'd become a little bit more limited the further the process goes on, but at the same time, you don't want these projects to become just adversarial forever because it's only a matter of time before the carpet gets pulled from under you and that starts to impact things from a future development and investment standpoint.
[[00:12:38]]
If there is local stakeholder risk associated with Delta Forge 1 for Cleco, what can the utility do to manage it? You talked about aggressive education campaigns, but what do you think about more material actions, such as utility bill credits or rate freeze commitments?
[[00:13:41]]
I think all of those things could be possible options, but I don't know any utility that wants to commit to a rate freeze necessarily in connection with approval for this type of project, especially when you are able to communicate the net benefit to customers as a result of this project coming to be. The utility industry has a real opportunity to be much better in terms of communicating fairly complex issues in a very simple way. One of the ways that I think you do that is talking about, "Hey, what's in it for the retail customer?" I don't know the specifics of Cleco's deal, but I would suspect that they've got some facts to support that top line statement.
[[00:14:58]]
Your base case would be that you don't anticipate that Cleco will need to offer credits or commit to rate freezes or any such sacrifices to get Delta Forge 1 approved and have the local stakeholders onboard. Is that right?
[[00:15:20]]
I think that's correct.
[[00:15:26]]
Are there other similar load opportunities for Cleco outside of Delta Forge 1, given its service area, whether data centre or otherwise? Does the company have capacity to take on multiple 200MW-plus loads?
[[00:15:46]]
I would suspect that Cleco would have some capacity. At the end of the day, in that region right now, capacity is at a premium. I think everybody is looking to get as much as they can. I definitely think that there is upside for a company like Cleco to continue to take advantage of this significant activity in the space, in the region. That is a good thing for them, again, from a capacity standpoint, not necessarily knowing what big deals they might have in the pipeline or what they're doing from, say, a PPA standpoint in terms of servicing some of the other stuff that's going on in the region. Absent that information, my base case is still pretty much the same.
[[00:16:49]]
Are there certain service areas that could hold greater opportunity for new interconnections for Cleco? It seems that the northern district – the Rapides Parish area – is getting the most focus.
[[00:17:13]]
You just said the one that I was going to say in terms of that northern region where there's a significant amount of activity there. I think that when you think about the land component, you just think about all of the basics of what makes for a good area to engage in this type of activity, I think the first thing is you've just got to get through some of these initial projects first before you really start to… From an on-the-ground execution standpoint, start to identify and go after some of those bigger additional opportunities.
[[00:17:56]]
Do you have any thoughts on whether Cleco might face resource constraints, given its existing portfolio of generating assets and the load opportunities we've discussed so far?
[[00:18:08]]
Do you mean in terms of serving existing customers or just in terms of what they have to work with to attract additional large load customers or data centres?
[[00:18:25]]
Since you mentioned it, I think both.
[[00:18:29]]
I don't think there's any issue with serving existing customers, but I think in terms of capacity concerns to attract or meet the demand that's being seen in the marketplace, I definitely think that's something they have to be thinking about because they're not the only ones that are thinking about it. Some of these companies that we're thinking about, that I have in my mind are certainly much larger in scale than Cleco.
[[00:19:10]]
Thinking about Delta Forge 1, so 400-500MW type of loads, and thinking about some of the lines coming to Cleco's service area, would you be concerned that the company doesn't have enough generation to support that?
[[00:19:31]]
No, I wouldn't necessarily be concerned that they wouldn't have enough generation to support it, but I would say that like any other company that has that opportunity and perhaps doesn't have all of the existing capacity to meet the need, then you've got to be thinking about it. Concern is a bit more of a loaded word in my brain, but it's certainly an issue that has to be addressed.
[[00:20:11]]
Louisiana is in both MISO [Midcontinent Independent System Operator] and SPP [Southwest Power Pool]. What is your broader view on resource availability? Could there be any shortage of generation for Cleco to support load growth such as data centres and its ability to address that, given the broader power pool and supply situation?
[[00:20:48]]
Again, not necessarily being an expert on the internal workings of Cleco's business, it's definitely something that they have to think about and figure out. I wish I could give you something better than that, but that's the best I have for you.
[[00:21:20]]
Do you anticipate negative or positive changes to Cleco's authorised ROE from LPSC [Louisiana Public Service Commission] at future rate cases, given the new ownership, service area affordability, expanded CAPEX plan, data centres and affordability concerns around that?
[[00:21:46]]
I don't see any risk that's greater in size for Cleco than it is anybody else. I think that for Cleco as well as others in the regulated utility space, with this broader conversation around affordability becoming more mainstream, you've got to be concerned about it. I would never say that it wouldn't be a risk, which to answer one component of your question, increasing the rate of return, I wouldn't bank on that. You know what I mean? I wouldn't necessarily bank on it going down. Neutral is pretty much where I see it with probably a little bit more risk toward going down if the stakeholder engagement work is not done the way that it needs to be done.
[[00:22:58]]
To juxtapose that and compare it to what the approved FRP [fixed reference price] is with LPSC, the authorised target ROE is 9.7%, with potential up to 10.3%, and the degree of cost sharing is beyond 10.3%, with full cost sharing above 10.9% or at 10.9%. Assuming that is the case, would you expect the same as your base case that you highlighted moving forwards with potential downside risk, depending on how it executes on the stakeholder relations side?
[[00:23:44]]
That is correct.
[[00:23:48]]
If Cleco has poor execution with regard to stakeholder relationship management with data centres and affordability, what did that look like historically? If the target ROE is 9.7%, does that go down to 9.5-9.2%?
[[00:24:14]]
I think from a historical perspective, I'd talk about it a little bit differently than the percentage decrease or increase. I would talk about it in terms of just the tone that exists in the regulatory environment, because if things get too off-balance and too noisy, then anything could happen. Given the fact that we've not really seen this level of activity and investment in a specific sector like these hyperscalers en masse, I think it'd probably be… I would feel a tad bit remiss. I'd feel not all the way comfortable using history as the benchmark there. Again, you just never want to be in a regulatory environment that is so noisy and so chaotic and you have so many people engaged, because again, you just don't know what's going to happen.
I think Cleco does a really good job or have done a good job of maintaining constructive regulatory relationships with the Public Service Commission. I think that their team has done a really good job of engaging with legislative leadership as well as executive leadership in the state, ie, the governor there. With that said, for as big of a proponent as Jeff Landry has been for recruiting these types of customers and driving that economic development play in his state, if people are just talking about how… If there's a perception that these data centres are driving up my cost as an average citizen, then no matter how big of a proponent he is of these types of economic activities, he's going to have to moderate his tone as well. You've seen some of that in the market already.
[[00:26:48]]
Are there any anecdotally relevant historical examples that we should consider with Cleco, such as risks to its authorised ROE and its relationship management with LPSC? Are there any examples for the company, peers or relevant utilities where there has been an issue with stakeholder engagement or execution during high-load-growth periods that led to negative impacts on its authorised returns?
[[00:27:23]]
I'm sure that there are some, and I don't have anything that immediately comes to mind, but one thing that I can share with you that I've been thinking about that I believe is also relevant. If you just go across a couple of borders over to the southern territory, you had a change in the make-up of the Public Service Commission over there with this last election. There's another election coming up. There's some questions around how that is going to work out. You see that they just announced, I think it was a two-year rate freeze, if I'm not mistaken. They didn't do that necessarily because that's what they wanted to do. That was a strategic play that they made to insulate against some of this other noise that's out there that couldn't be compelling to certainly some of these newer commissioners and perhaps even existing commissioners that you want to just try to provide as much air cover as you can before any particular issue actually arises. I know it's a long response to your question, but that's what I have.
[[00:28:42]]
Apart from black-and-white changes to authorised ROEs, are you concerned about the impact of regulatory lag risk and efficient, timely cost recovery on future investments for Cleco?
[[00:28:58]]
I'm not overly concerned about that, especially if the communication is at the level that it needs to be. I think the biggest thing about all of these types of projects and the impact or potential impact to the regulatory construct is you've just got to over-communicate and properly manage expectations associated with all of these things. If you say something, then you have to be able to demonstrate that in practice, that is what it is. Misaligned expectations in this era that we find ourselves in right now, that is very dangerous.
[[00:30:00]]
Do you consider Louisiana regulation to be constructive for Cleco in terms of supporting increased investment and realising cost recovery through returns and rates? Why or why not?
[[00:30:20]]
The short answer is, yes, I do. While there may be some noise that's being made out there generally. Cleco has a good reputation in the state, have been appropriately focused on maintaining those relationships, and from an execution operations standpoint, have a good reputation there as well, so don't see any real… Not concerned by any real risk that Cleco may be presented with in that regard.
[[00:31:04]]
Is the LPS [large power service] tariff framework with regard to large loads and the tariff system or framework comprehensive enough to make the onboarding of new data centres easy or streamlined for Cleco? Why or why not? What do you see as the pros and cons of the LPS framework as it currently stands?
[[00:31:42]]
I think that the short answer is, given where we are and the speed with which everybody is moving to include our regulators, you should probably expect that over time, some of these things will potentially be tweaked, presumably for the better, to make for a more efficient process. Again, that's why I'd go back to the statement on making sure that what you say is going to be is actually what ends up happening from a delivery standpoint because all of these… Not all of them, but to some extent, all of this is a big proof-of-concept moment for folks. I think so long as communities are benefiting significantly and people can see and feel that, and from a regulatory standpoint, what we say in terms of these types of projects not putting upward pressure on rates or cost prices for the average consumer, then I think that probably qualifies as a winning type of environment there. I think it's when things get off that you have to be concerned about some of these other potential risks. To your question around, would you expect any changes, perhaps.
[[00:33:19]]
What are the pros and cons of the LPS or tariff framework? What do you think is missing?
[[00:33:31]]
I think some of the pros are, there's a significant amount of predictability that is built into this existing structured framework/process that I think, inherently… At least it gives you a better frame of view from which to structure and make these deals. I think the downside of that is some of these things have been around for a while. Sometimes it takes regulatory policy a little while to catch up with advancements in a specific technological space or increased demand. You just have to work through that, which is why I couldn't say beyond the shadow of a doubt that, "Oh, yes, you shouldn't expect any changes," because I just don't know that to be true.
[[00:34:33]]
Is LPS as a whole comprehensive enough with regard to some of the hot-button topics around who pays for grid upgrades, cost sharing or allocation, concerns around reliability and penalties for that or expectations around that with data centres? What isn't covered by LPS? Where is there no visibility for Cleco?
[[00:35:08]]
Let me answer this question the way I think I understood it. With the LPSC, I think that their expectation is that all of the things that we talked about… Can you rephrase the question again because there are several parts to it that I was trying to listen for just to make sure?
[[00:35:36]]
With data centres connecting to the grid with the utilities, there is a wide array of hot-button issues – who pays for grid upgrades, how are costs allocated or shared among rate payers, such as retail and the data centres themselves or large loads, and reliability issues, concerns and expectations around that and penalties for that. With all those hot-button topics, does the LPS tariff framework provide clear visibility on all of that, or are there certain gaps that Cleco should be concerned about?
[[00:36:20]]
I'm sure it doesn't really capture all of this because a lot of this stuff is… Particularly when you start talking about electric service, ESAs, a lot of that is captured in the deal. I think that for sophisticated actors in this space, when you are sitting down with the counterparty and you guys are trying to work through the details and what makes sense for you, you've got to take all of that into account because those hot-button issues certainly aren't going away. If you present this deal or this framework that is not taking into account those issues, I think you set yourself up for a problem. Again, all of these risks are out there, but the good thing is you know that and then you plan for that and you make that a part of your process in the deal development phase.
[[00:37:27]]
Given the current regulatory environment surrounding affordability and all the drivers we've discussed so far, what worst-case scenarios do you see for Cleco?
[[00:37:47]]
I think one of the worst scenarios is just not being able to move forward with the deal because it got so noisy, or you are able to move forward… It does continue to move forward, but it's so noisy that you're making concessions at every step of the way that ultimately make the deal less attractive for you.
[[00:38:23]]
What are the worst-case scenario concessions?
[[00:38:32]]
I don't know if it necessarily qualifies as a worst-case scenario, but it's certainly not ideal. Having to say, "Oh, yes, we're going to do a rate freeze," or saying, "Don't know about this…" Those are pretty much the things that immediately come to mind for me. The other thing is that you're still running a whole enterprise here, and you don't want these deals to impact the significant work that has gone into developing this constructive regulatory environment over many years based on what's going on at this moment in time.
[[00:39:31]]
If Cleco overcommits to data centres or puts down actual material capital, and the data centres fail to fully execute, exit service earlier than expected or anything that leaves Cleco without the full ROI, can the company still recoup those costs under existing regulatory mechanisms or based on its relationship with LPSC? Or would it be stuck with stranded asset costs and/or risks?
[[00:40:10]]
I think there's a chance that they could work through it, but again, given this environment, I think it probably behooves them to get this all taken care of on the front end rather than finding themselves in that position, because again, it's just noisy enough out here and there is engagement, just mainstream engagement on this affordability conversation that your regulators will find themselves in a tough spot. Even if they want to help you, optically, I think it might be harder for them to do that. That's not to suggest that you couldn't get there. I just think it would be hard. You want to just avoid that.
[[00:41:03]]
If Cleco spends on Delta Forge 1, capital is deployed and Applied Digital pulls the plug on it after 1-2 years of service, could the capital spent by the company on this project – assuming it can't get it back from Applied Digital – get the approval of LPSC to raise rates on everyone else, or would that be very hard to pull off?
[[00:41:34]]
I think that would be hard to pull off, especially if the increase in rates are demonstrably tied to some shortcoming of one of the parties in the deal, them leaving early.
[[00:41:55]]
How might any reliability issues from here on out be treated by LPSC? Do you see any concerns around that with regard to new large loads coming in and potentially imposing major step-ups in power demand for Cleco? If that leads to any reliability issues or reliability performance errors, will that be a problem for the company in terms of managing its relationship with LPSC?
[[00:42:27]]
I believe that reliability is front and centre as well in the minds of customers and regulators. When you think about those issues in this larger conversation around affordability, it's all tied together. It becomes a question of, does the value proposition make sense. You've got these large customers, data centres, large load customers coming in, the narrative out here that they're increasing prices, but you're telling me that that's not the case. In fact, it's helping customers or the average retail customer and then… You already have this focus on, frankly, an area of the economy that hasn't generally received this level of mainstream focus, the utility space, but now that is the case. You're being judged on everything a little bit more intensely than you have been in the past, which makes it super-important to try to make sure that from an operational performance standpoint, from a reliability standpoint, you are on your A game, especially as you're trying to get these new deals done, because it's a logical response or way to think about it… It's not illogical for somebody to say, "Well, hey, if you're having these problems with reliability, is this too associated with data centres or because price is up, is this too?" This is an easy place for people to go that aren't necessarily experts in this business.
[[00:44:29]]
What are the top indicators, events or trends you are watching in the near-to-medium term that could materially impact Cleco positively or negatively?
[[00:45:00]]
I hate to sound like a broken record, but the affordability issue is the number one issue right now. I think the concern there is, with there being so much focus on that particular aspect of our business, then that means there are more eyes on (audio cuts out 45.21) business. If you have significant major issues, then that could have an unanticipated impact on you. I try not to lose sight of the fact that these regulators, and they're all elected officials, they all have constituents, and in some cases, they don't… This is not the only part of their job that they have to focus on. To some extent, more limited information and they become very reliant on their advisers and their technical staff and all of that, which is fine, but all of these people will be influenced by what's happening and what's being discussed among a broader group of people.
[[00:46:19]]
What is your view on Cleco's regulator and key stakeholder relationships, especially interveners, moving forwards, given the new PE ownership?
[[00:46:35]]
I think it's probably not going to be… I think it probably won't be too dissimilar, at least initially, than what you've seen with other PE firms that have come in and had transactions in the state. I think that will probably be a knock in the beginning, but once you get past that with the information, with facts around what this new ownership actually does mean and look like and you make people comfortable with that, I think you get through that.
[[00:47:32]]
What is your view on the state of relationship between Cleco and LPSC currently?
[[00:47:44]]
In terms of Cleco and LPSC, I think they've got a constructive working relationship.
[[00:47:51]]
Is there any risk to that relationship? Could the relationships be strained and there could be an impact on how rates will be set or authorised ROEs will be set in the future?
[[00:48:12]]
I think the risk, that always exists in the regulator or regulated concept. You look at the make-up of the current LPSC. I think you can pretty easily determine this commissioner is extremely focused on cost issues, affordability issues. That's the lens through which they are viewing their regulatory responsibility and policymaking responsibility, but again, if you know that going in, you plan for that. To that end, making sure that this issue of affordability is always front and centre in everything that you are doing and making sure that you are clearly articulating what's real and what's not, what you expect to happen, what you don't expect to happen and staying in line with that throughout execution, I think that puts you in a really good place.
[[00:49:25]]
What is your assessment of Cleco's relationship with other key stakeholders, especially in the rate case process? How has the company typically been perceived by interveners, for example?
[[00:49:48]]
I think generally speaking, they've done a good job of navigating that environment, that process. In terms of some of the stakeholders out there, and I'll just use the Alliance for Affordable Energy, they are never going to be singing anybody's praises in any form because that's just not what they're built to do, but I think everybody understands that. That's why it becomes, again, even more important for the communication around all of those things to be crisp and come through in a very sustained way. Historically, I think Cleco has done a pretty good job of, again, being connected to the communities in which they serve. I think there's probably some goodwill out there. I think in terms of the new ownership, the structure that exists right now, there's a lot of connectivity to the state of Louisiana there as well. I think that's helpful.
[[00:51:07]]
How do you think about Cleco's relationships with the governor and government and the material ways in which that could impact its operations and ability to invest and generate ROIC?
[[00:51:31]]
Again, I think as it stands right now, they have done a really good job of maintaining good relationships with folks like the governor, but I just can't emphasise enough the importance of recognising that all of these situations are very dynamic. You just really have to be on your Ps and Qs in terms of anticipating some of the issues that are already out there and having solid responses that address those, of course, making sure that what you commit to, to get people like the governor onboard or commitments that have been made to people like the governor that makes them proponents of this type of activity, just make sure you don't embarrass them. You generally do that by doing what you say you're going to do and having this process work the way you said that you expect it to work. There's nothing real novel about that intelligence. That's pretty standard. Data centres are not…
[[00:52:46]]
How does LPSC treat different types of utility investments? Is it more amenable to granting full cost recovery or being more favourable on certain types of investments, such as transmission vs distribution vs generation?
[[00:53:12]]
I think that they have generally taken a pretty reasonable approach on all of those particular sectors or categories. With that said, to the extent that anyone, whether it be transmission, distribution, generation, whatever, if there is some noise around that, you can probably anticipate that that is going to be the focus of the regulators in that particular moment.
[[00:53:51]]
What is your sense of the types of utility investment that might be better or worse in terms of perception by LPSC?
[[00:54:05]]
I think given some of the events that you've seen recently in the state, you have to assume that transmission is a piece of that. Based on where they are located, more risk of storms and all that good stuff, all those things, then the distribution piece of it becomes very important, which goes back to the whole reliability issue and how that might influence one's perspective on this broader conversation.
[[00:55:06]]
Do you have any closing remarks on what we need to look at with regard to Cleco, especially anything that could be a downside risk?
[[00:55:20]]
Based on the question that you asked, you're thinking about the approach the right way. I think in closing, what I'll say is, and this goes for the most sophisticated regulated utilities, both from an operational and from an engagement standpoint to those who are less so, again, this is a dynamic environment that we find ourselves in. You just have to make sure that there are no lapses in attention to the detail that's required to make sure that all of these issues are appropriately managed. That takes a lot of focus.
[[00:56:14]]
All right. With that, I'll close it here. Thanks so much for engaging with us again, and I appreciate your time on Cleco.
[[00:56:24]]
Sounds good. Thank you very much.
[[00:56:26]]
All right. Thanks so much. Have a good one.
Transcription ends at 00:56:28 of the recorded material
What are your views on the key load growth opportunities for Cleco Power, given the Rapides Parish data centre project, otherwise called Delta Forge 1, which it is doing for Applied Digital?
[[00:01:08]]
From my perspective, and I think Cleco is somewhat similarly situated as most of the regulated utility companies in the Gulf South and beyond, frankly, in that the data centre operations and large load customers being attracted to that region, that's the most significant opportunity, I think, for them as well as others right now.
[[00:01:47]]
Is there anything you consider attractive for large loads such as Applied Digital for Cleco? What is special about the service area for those?
[[00:02:06]]
I think it's a couple of things. One is, from a price perspective, I think that makes the region generally attractive. I think in terms of there being less opposition to the data centre large load conversation in the Gulf South than in other places, that's attractive. Now with that being said, there are some headwinds there. Certainly, when you think about this broader conversation around affordability, that's a national conversation. The Gulf South is not immune to that. I think for a utility like a Cleco situated in a state like Louisiana, where there's pretty positive and favourable support from some of your key stakeholders, namely the governor, certain members of the commission and then the communities at large who I believe see significant economic development opportunities and growth opportunities from a municipal perspective, all of those things are favourable. Again, with that said, there is some opposition. The fact that affordability continues to dominate the political and to some… Certainly the political conversation, that's an issue that everybody is actively trying to work through.
[[00:03:59]]
How do you think about execution risks on the development and interconnection process for Delta Forge 1 for Cleco, given its scale of USD 3.6bn and 430MW? When we talk about a load of that size, would you be concerned if the company can execute on that?
[[00:04:26]]
Let me answer the question in a different way. I think that when it comes to execution risk for the significant capital-intensive investments that have to be made, it's not just Cleco that's having to be very thoughtful about that. It's everybody. Now for a company like Cleco, given the size that it is, a USD 3bn-plus investment, yes, you 100% have to worry about the execution risk on that. Then the other thing that complicates the matter even more beyond just the performance measure is the political environment and the regulatory environment around affordability. That has to continue to be managed. That's just not a Cleco issue, that's an industry issue that all goes into the execution risk bucket that you just asked about.
[[00:05:44]]
Do you see Nimby [not in my backyard] or local stakeholder risk for the projects? How do you think about whether that exists and whether it is material enough to kill or at least chill the project?
[[00:06:07]]
It absolutely exists. I think given where we are right now with so much activity taking place throughout the region at the same time, people are still trying to manage through some of those stakeholder engagement issues, and frankly, concerns that are out there. I suspect that you are probably going to see a more aggressive and coordinated communications campaign around educating the general public as well as regulators on what's real, what's not relative to the opportunity, with a large portion of that conversation being focused on the affordability component, and frankly, answering the central fundamental question of, are these data centres going to drive up cost for the average consumer. That right there is just central to all of the stakeholder engagement work that's being done and has to be done in order to position these projects for success today and into the future.
[[00:07:33]]
In what specific ways could you see Nimby-ism or local stakeholders getting in the way of the development of the project? Are there certain development stages where they have more ability to get in the way? Are they able to get in the way throughout the development cycle of the data centre regardless of what regulators and political parties say, assuming that they're in favour?
[[00:08:04]]
Good question. The most risk is always at the beginning and the approval process associated with these types of projects, which is why it's always helpful to get that stuff done, secured, out of the way as soon as possible, but risks remain throughout the course of these things and it's really more of a future-focused risk because you want to have this track record where, number one, you are attracting this type of development in the region, but then number two, you want to be successful in the execution of that such that you create an environment where more of this type of investment is focused and there's more of a demand within the tech companies or whoever the big customers are to come to this region of the country.
When you look at what's going on in the Northeast and other areas of the country, which… Data centre development isn't necessarily a new concept. It's getting noisy. It's getting harder. I spent a lot of time in Washington, DC, and that was just the mayoral race, and that race was really decided on affordability of electricity, because Pepco, DC, that area is market-driven PJM, that conversation immediately went to data centres being the driver of increased cost to customers. Now all of this is being discussed in the context of a political race. Facts don't always have to be directly factual, but that's the narrative that was out there that, again, has influenced the outcome of a race here and has put a lot of pressure on the Public Service Commission and other government leaders here in the District of Columbia. It's a real thing.
[[00:10:27]]
You characterised a lot of the development risk with the project we're discussing and with data centre projects more broadly being in the early or approval stage. What about beyond that stage? When actual interconnection, grid infrastructure, physical infrastructure, physical builds, etc, are being erected, can local stakeholders still have or pose much execution risk? Or would you consider the local stakeholder to be fairly limited in terms of its ability to freeze or kill development?
[[00:11:03]]
I think at that point, particularly in a region like Louisiana, with the politics being what they are there and beyond, that's just more of a desire on the part of communities to want to have development that changes the financial, economic fabric of the community. I definitely think that is a good thing. The bottom line is getting through that approval process, making sure that you are delivering on the commitments that you have made to your key stakeholders in terms of who will bear the actual cost, what are the dynamics of the deal that make sense and then communicating at the end of the day why this is ultimately a net benefit to the retail customer is all good stuff. I think they'd become a little bit more limited the further the process goes on, but at the same time, you don't want these projects to become just adversarial forever because it's only a matter of time before the carpet gets pulled from under you and that starts to impact things from a future development and investment standpoint.
[[00:12:38]]
If there is local stakeholder risk associated with Delta Forge 1 for Cleco, what can the utility do to manage it? You talked about aggressive education campaigns, but what do you think about more material actions, such as utility bill credits or rate freeze commitments?
[[00:13:41]]
I think all of those things could be possible options, but I don't know any utility that wants to commit to a rate freeze necessarily in connection with approval for this type of project, especially when you are able to communicate the net benefit to customers as a result of this project coming to be. The utility industry has a real opportunity to be much better in terms of communicating fairly complex issues in a very simple way. One of the ways that I think you do that is talking about, "Hey, what's in it for the retail customer?" I don't know the specifics of Cleco's deal, but I would suspect that they've got some facts to support that top line statement.
[[00:14:58]]
Your base case would be that you don't anticipate that Cleco will need to offer credits or commit to rate freezes or any such sacrifices to get Delta Forge 1 approved and have the local stakeholders onboard. Is that right?
[[00:15:20]]
I think that's correct.
[[00:15:26]]
Are there other similar load opportunities for Cleco outside of Delta Forge 1, given its service area, whether data centre or otherwise? Does the company have capacity to take on multiple 200MW-plus loads?
[[00:15:46]]
I would suspect that Cleco would have some capacity. At the end of the day, in that region right now, capacity is at a premium. I think everybody is looking to get as much as they can. I definitely think that there is upside for a company like Cleco to continue to take advantage of this significant activity in the space, in the region. That is a good thing for them, again, from a capacity standpoint, not necessarily knowing what big deals they might have in the pipeline or what they're doing from, say, a PPA standpoint in terms of servicing some of the other stuff that's going on in the region. Absent that information, my base case is still pretty much the same.
[[00:16:49]]
Are there certain service areas that could hold greater opportunity for new interconnections for Cleco? It seems that the northern district – the Rapides Parish area – is getting the most focus.
[[00:17:13]]
You just said the one that I was going to say in terms of that northern region where there's a significant amount of activity there. I think that when you think about the land component, you just think about all of the basics of what makes for a good area to engage in this type of activity, I think the first thing is you've just got to get through some of these initial projects first before you really start to… From an on-the-ground execution standpoint, start to identify and go after some of those bigger additional opportunities.
[[00:17:56]]
Do you have any thoughts on whether Cleco might face resource constraints, given its existing portfolio of generating assets and the load opportunities we've discussed so far?
[[00:18:08]]
Do you mean in terms of serving existing customers or just in terms of what they have to work with to attract additional large load customers or data centres?
[[00:18:25]]
Since you mentioned it, I think both.
[[00:18:29]]
I don't think there's any issue with serving existing customers, but I think in terms of capacity concerns to attract or meet the demand that's being seen in the marketplace, I definitely think that's something they have to be thinking about because they're not the only ones that are thinking about it. Some of these companies that we're thinking about, that I have in my mind are certainly much larger in scale than Cleco.
[[00:19:10]]
Thinking about Delta Forge 1, so 400-500MW type of loads, and thinking about some of the lines coming to Cleco's service area, would you be concerned that the company doesn't have enough generation to support that?
[[00:19:31]]
No, I wouldn't necessarily be concerned that they wouldn't have enough generation to support it, but I would say that like any other company that has that opportunity and perhaps doesn't have all of the existing capacity to meet the need, then you've got to be thinking about it. Concern is a bit more of a loaded word in my brain, but it's certainly an issue that has to be addressed.
[[00:20:11]]
Louisiana is in both MISO [Midcontinent Independent System Operator] and SPP [Southwest Power Pool]. What is your broader view on resource availability? Could there be any shortage of generation for Cleco to support load growth such as data centres and its ability to address that, given the broader power pool and supply situation?
[[00:20:48]]
Again, not necessarily being an expert on the internal workings of Cleco's business, it's definitely something that they have to think about and figure out. I wish I could give you something better than that, but that's the best I have for you.
[[00:21:20]]
Do you anticipate negative or positive changes to Cleco's authorised ROE from LPSC [Louisiana Public Service Commission] at future rate cases, given the new ownership, service area affordability, expanded CAPEX plan, data centres and affordability concerns around that?
[[00:21:46]]
I don't see any risk that's greater in size for Cleco than it is anybody else. I think that for Cleco as well as others in the regulated utility space, with this broader conversation around affordability becoming more mainstream, you've got to be concerned about it. I would never say that it wouldn't be a risk, which to answer one component of your question, increasing the rate of return, I wouldn't bank on that. You know what I mean? I wouldn't necessarily bank on it going down. Neutral is pretty much where I see it with probably a little bit more risk toward going down if the stakeholder engagement work is not done the way that it needs to be done.
[[00:22:58]]
To juxtapose that and compare it to what the approved FRP [fixed reference price] is with LPSC, the authorised target ROE is 9.7%, with potential up to 10.3%, and the degree of cost sharing is beyond 10.3%, with full cost sharing above 10.9% or at 10.9%. Assuming that is the case, would you expect the same as your base case that you highlighted moving forwards with potential downside risk, depending on how it executes on the stakeholder relations side?
[[00:23:44]]
That is correct.
[[00:23:48]]
If Cleco has poor execution with regard to stakeholder relationship management with data centres and affordability, what did that look like historically? If the target ROE is 9.7%, does that go down to 9.5-9.2%?
[[00:24:14]]
I think from a historical perspective, I'd talk about it a little bit differently than the percentage decrease or increase. I would talk about it in terms of just the tone that exists in the regulatory environment, because if things get too off-balance and too noisy, then anything could happen. Given the fact that we've not really seen this level of activity and investment in a specific sector like these hyperscalers en masse, I think it'd probably be… I would feel a tad bit remiss. I'd feel not all the way comfortable using history as the benchmark there. Again, you just never want to be in a regulatory environment that is so noisy and so chaotic and you have so many people engaged, because again, you just don't know what's going to happen.
I think Cleco does a really good job or have done a good job of maintaining constructive regulatory relationships with the Public Service Commission. I think that their team has done a really good job of engaging with legislative leadership as well as executive leadership in the state, ie, the governor there. With that said, for as big of a proponent as Jeff Landry has been for recruiting these types of customers and driving that economic development play in his state, if people are just talking about how… If there's a perception that these data centres are driving up my cost as an average citizen, then no matter how big of a proponent he is of these types of economic activities, he's going to have to moderate his tone as well. You've seen some of that in the market already.
[[00:26:48]]
Are there any anecdotally relevant historical examples that we should consider with Cleco, such as risks to its authorised ROE and its relationship management with LPSC? Are there any examples for the company, peers or relevant utilities where there has been an issue with stakeholder engagement or execution during high-load-growth periods that led to negative impacts on its authorised returns?
[[00:27:23]]
I'm sure that there are some, and I don't have anything that immediately comes to mind, but one thing that I can share with you that I've been thinking about that I believe is also relevant. If you just go across a couple of borders over to the southern territory, you had a change in the make-up of the Public Service Commission over there with this last election. There's another election coming up. There's some questions around how that is going to work out. You see that they just announced, I think it was a two-year rate freeze, if I'm not mistaken. They didn't do that necessarily because that's what they wanted to do. That was a strategic play that they made to insulate against some of this other noise that's out there that couldn't be compelling to certainly some of these newer commissioners and perhaps even existing commissioners that you want to just try to provide as much air cover as you can before any particular issue actually arises. I know it's a long response to your question, but that's what I have.
[[00:28:42]]
Apart from black-and-white changes to authorised ROEs, are you concerned about the impact of regulatory lag risk and efficient, timely cost recovery on future investments for Cleco?
[[00:28:58]]
I'm not overly concerned about that, especially if the communication is at the level that it needs to be. I think the biggest thing about all of these types of projects and the impact or potential impact to the regulatory construct is you've just got to over-communicate and properly manage expectations associated with all of these things. If you say something, then you have to be able to demonstrate that in practice, that is what it is. Misaligned expectations in this era that we find ourselves in right now, that is very dangerous.
[[00:30:00]]
Do you consider Louisiana regulation to be constructive for Cleco in terms of supporting increased investment and realising cost recovery through returns and rates? Why or why not?
[[00:30:20]]
The short answer is, yes, I do. While there may be some noise that's being made out there generally. Cleco has a good reputation in the state, have been appropriately focused on maintaining those relationships, and from an execution operations standpoint, have a good reputation there as well, so don't see any real… Not concerned by any real risk that Cleco may be presented with in that regard.
[[00:31:04]]
Is the LPS [large power service] tariff framework with regard to large loads and the tariff system or framework comprehensive enough to make the onboarding of new data centres easy or streamlined for Cleco? Why or why not? What do you see as the pros and cons of the LPS framework as it currently stands?
[[00:31:42]]
I think that the short answer is, given where we are and the speed with which everybody is moving to include our regulators, you should probably expect that over time, some of these things will potentially be tweaked, presumably for the better, to make for a more efficient process. Again, that's why I'd go back to the statement on making sure that what you say is going to be is actually what ends up happening from a delivery standpoint because all of these… Not all of them, but to some extent, all of this is a big proof-of-concept moment for folks. I think so long as communities are benefiting significantly and people can see and feel that, and from a regulatory standpoint, what we say in terms of these types of projects not putting upward pressure on rates or cost prices for the average consumer, then I think that probably qualifies as a winning type of environment there. I think it's when things get off that you have to be concerned about some of these other potential risks. To your question around, would you expect any changes, perhaps.
[[00:33:19]]
What are the pros and cons of the LPS or tariff framework? What do you think is missing?
[[00:33:31]]
I think some of the pros are, there's a significant amount of predictability that is built into this existing structured framework/process that I think, inherently… At least it gives you a better frame of view from which to structure and make these deals. I think the downside of that is some of these things have been around for a while. Sometimes it takes regulatory policy a little while to catch up with advancements in a specific technological space or increased demand. You just have to work through that, which is why I couldn't say beyond the shadow of a doubt that, "Oh, yes, you shouldn't expect any changes," because I just don't know that to be true.
[[00:34:33]]
Is LPS as a whole comprehensive enough with regard to some of the hot-button topics around who pays for grid upgrades, cost sharing or allocation, concerns around reliability and penalties for that or expectations around that with data centres? What isn't covered by LPS? Where is there no visibility for Cleco?
[[00:35:08]]
Let me answer this question the way I think I understood it. With the LPSC, I think that their expectation is that all of the things that we talked about… Can you rephrase the question again because there are several parts to it that I was trying to listen for just to make sure?
[[00:35:36]]
With data centres connecting to the grid with the utilities, there is a wide array of hot-button issues – who pays for grid upgrades, how are costs allocated or shared among rate payers, such as retail and the data centres themselves or large loads, and reliability issues, concerns and expectations around that and penalties for that. With all those hot-button topics, does the LPS tariff framework provide clear visibility on all of that, or are there certain gaps that Cleco should be concerned about?
[[00:36:20]]
I'm sure it doesn't really capture all of this because a lot of this stuff is… Particularly when you start talking about electric service, ESAs, a lot of that is captured in the deal. I think that for sophisticated actors in this space, when you are sitting down with the counterparty and you guys are trying to work through the details and what makes sense for you, you've got to take all of that into account because those hot-button issues certainly aren't going away. If you present this deal or this framework that is not taking into account those issues, I think you set yourself up for a problem. Again, all of these risks are out there, but the good thing is you know that and then you plan for that and you make that a part of your process in the deal development phase.
[[00:37:27]]
Given the current regulatory environment surrounding affordability and all the drivers we've discussed so far, what worst-case scenarios do you see for Cleco?
[[00:37:47]]
I think one of the worst scenarios is just not being able to move forward with the deal because it got so noisy, or you are able to move forward… It does continue to move forward, but it's so noisy that you're making concessions at every step of the way that ultimately make the deal less attractive for you.
[[00:38:23]]
What are the worst-case scenario concessions?
[[00:38:32]]
I don't know if it necessarily qualifies as a worst-case scenario, but it's certainly not ideal. Having to say, "Oh, yes, we're going to do a rate freeze," or saying, "Don't know about this…" Those are pretty much the things that immediately come to mind for me. The other thing is that you're still running a whole enterprise here, and you don't want these deals to impact the significant work that has gone into developing this constructive regulatory environment over many years based on what's going on at this moment in time.
[[00:39:31]]
If Cleco overcommits to data centres or puts down actual material capital, and the data centres fail to fully execute, exit service earlier than expected or anything that leaves Cleco without the full ROI, can the company still recoup those costs under existing regulatory mechanisms or based on its relationship with LPSC? Or would it be stuck with stranded asset costs and/or risks?
[[00:40:10]]
I think there's a chance that they could work through it, but again, given this environment, I think it probably behooves them to get this all taken care of on the front end rather than finding themselves in that position, because again, it's just noisy enough out here and there is engagement, just mainstream engagement on this affordability conversation that your regulators will find themselves in a tough spot. Even if they want to help you, optically, I think it might be harder for them to do that. That's not to suggest that you couldn't get there. I just think it would be hard. You want to just avoid that.
[[00:41:03]]
If Cleco spends on Delta Forge 1, capital is deployed and Applied Digital pulls the plug on it after 1-2 years of service, could the capital spent by the company on this project – assuming it can't get it back from Applied Digital – get the approval of LPSC to raise rates on everyone else, or would that be very hard to pull off?
[[00:41:34]]
I think that would be hard to pull off, especially if the increase in rates are demonstrably tied to some shortcoming of one of the parties in the deal, them leaving early.
[[00:41:55]]
How might any reliability issues from here on out be treated by LPSC? Do you see any concerns around that with regard to new large loads coming in and potentially imposing major step-ups in power demand for Cleco? If that leads to any reliability issues or reliability performance errors, will that be a problem for the company in terms of managing its relationship with LPSC?
[[00:42:27]]
I believe that reliability is front and centre as well in the minds of customers and regulators. When you think about those issues in this larger conversation around affordability, it's all tied together. It becomes a question of, does the value proposition make sense. You've got these large customers, data centres, large load customers coming in, the narrative out here that they're increasing prices, but you're telling me that that's not the case. In fact, it's helping customers or the average retail customer and then… You already have this focus on, frankly, an area of the economy that hasn't generally received this level of mainstream focus, the utility space, but now that is the case. You're being judged on everything a little bit more intensely than you have been in the past, which makes it super-important to try to make sure that from an operational performance standpoint, from a reliability standpoint, you are on your A game, especially as you're trying to get these new deals done, because it's a logical response or way to think about it… It's not illogical for somebody to say, "Well, hey, if you're having these problems with reliability, is this too associated with data centres or because price is up, is this too?" This is an easy place for people to go that aren't necessarily experts in this business.
[[00:44:29]]
What are the top indicators, events or trends you are watching in the near-to-medium term that could materially impact Cleco positively or negatively?
[[00:45:00]]
I hate to sound like a broken record, but the affordability issue is the number one issue right now. I think the concern there is, with there being so much focus on that particular aspect of our business, then that means there are more eyes on (audio cuts out 45.21) business. If you have significant major issues, then that could have an unanticipated impact on you. I try not to lose sight of the fact that these regulators, and they're all elected officials, they all have constituents, and in some cases, they don't… This is not the only part of their job that they have to focus on. To some extent, more limited information and they become very reliant on their advisers and their technical staff and all of that, which is fine, but all of these people will be influenced by what's happening and what's being discussed among a broader group of people.
[[00:46:19]]
What is your view on Cleco's regulator and key stakeholder relationships, especially interveners, moving forwards, given the new PE ownership?
[[00:46:35]]
I think it's probably not going to be… I think it probably won't be too dissimilar, at least initially, than what you've seen with other PE firms that have come in and had transactions in the state. I think that will probably be a knock in the beginning, but once you get past that with the information, with facts around what this new ownership actually does mean and look like and you make people comfortable with that, I think you get through that.
[[00:47:32]]
What is your view on the state of relationship between Cleco and LPSC currently?
[[00:47:44]]
In terms of Cleco and LPSC, I think they've got a constructive working relationship.
[[00:47:51]]
Is there any risk to that relationship? Could the relationships be strained and there could be an impact on how rates will be set or authorised ROEs will be set in the future?
[[00:48:12]]
I think the risk, that always exists in the regulator or regulated concept. You look at the make-up of the current LPSC. I think you can pretty easily determine this commissioner is extremely focused on cost issues, affordability issues. That's the lens through which they are viewing their regulatory responsibility and policymaking responsibility, but again, if you know that going in, you plan for that. To that end, making sure that this issue of affordability is always front and centre in everything that you are doing and making sure that you are clearly articulating what's real and what's not, what you expect to happen, what you don't expect to happen and staying in line with that throughout execution, I think that puts you in a really good place.
[[00:49:25]]
What is your assessment of Cleco's relationship with other key stakeholders, especially in the rate case process? How has the company typically been perceived by interveners, for example?
[[00:49:48]]
I think generally speaking, they've done a good job of navigating that environment, that process. In terms of some of the stakeholders out there, and I'll just use the Alliance for Affordable Energy, they are never going to be singing anybody's praises in any form because that's just not what they're built to do, but I think everybody understands that. That's why it becomes, again, even more important for the communication around all of those things to be crisp and come through in a very sustained way. Historically, I think Cleco has done a pretty good job of, again, being connected to the communities in which they serve. I think there's probably some goodwill out there. I think in terms of the new ownership, the structure that exists right now, there's a lot of connectivity to the state of Louisiana there as well. I think that's helpful.
[[00:51:07]]
How do you think about Cleco's relationships with the governor and government and the material ways in which that could impact its operations and ability to invest and generate ROIC?
[[00:51:31]]
Again, I think as it stands right now, they have done a really good job of maintaining good relationships with folks like the governor, but I just can't emphasise enough the importance of recognising that all of these situations are very dynamic. You just really have to be on your Ps and Qs in terms of anticipating some of the issues that are already out there and having solid responses that address those, of course, making sure that what you commit to, to get people like the governor onboard or commitments that have been made to people like the governor that makes them proponents of this type of activity, just make sure you don't embarrass them. You generally do that by doing what you say you're going to do and having this process work the way you said that you expect it to work. There's nothing real novel about that intelligence. That's pretty standard. Data centres are not…
[[00:52:46]]
How does LPSC treat different types of utility investments? Is it more amenable to granting full cost recovery or being more favourable on certain types of investments, such as transmission vs distribution vs generation?
[[00:53:12]]
I think that they have generally taken a pretty reasonable approach on all of those particular sectors or categories. With that said, to the extent that anyone, whether it be transmission, distribution, generation, whatever, if there is some noise around that, you can probably anticipate that that is going to be the focus of the regulators in that particular moment.
[[00:53:51]]
What is your sense of the types of utility investment that might be better or worse in terms of perception by LPSC?
[[00:54:05]]
I think given some of the events that you've seen recently in the state, you have to assume that transmission is a piece of that. Based on where they are located, more risk of storms and all that good stuff, all those things, then the distribution piece of it becomes very important, which goes back to the whole reliability issue and how that might influence one's perspective on this broader conversation.
[[00:55:06]]
Do you have any closing remarks on what we need to look at with regard to Cleco, especially anything that could be a downside risk?
[[00:55:20]]
Based on the question that you asked, you're thinking about the approach the right way. I think in closing, what I'll say is, and this goes for the most sophisticated regulated utilities, both from an operational and from an engagement standpoint to those who are less so, again, this is a dynamic environment that we find ourselves in. You just have to make sure that there are no lapses in attention to the detail that's required to make sure that all of these issues are appropriately managed. That takes a lot of focus.
[[00:56:14]]
All right. With that, I'll close it here. Thanks so much for engaging with us again, and I appreciate your time on Cleco.
[[00:56:24]]
Sounds good. Thank you very much.
[[00:56:26]]
All right. Thanks so much. Have a good one.
Transcription ends at 00:56:28 of the recorded material
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