At a high-powered panel during the Southern States Energy Board conference Monday, three Republican governors touted the explosive potential of artificial intelligence data centers to transform the economies of Southern states.
They firmly reject government subsidies for clean energy and calling instead for market-driven solutions.
The discussion highlighted the benefits of artificial intelligence data centers, and the projected revenues they will produce for local communities. It also focused on challenges of developing a future workforce to handle more automated jobs of the future.
The panel – which included Republican Govs. Tate Reeves of Mississippi, Brian Kemp of Georgia and Mike Kehoe of Missouri – also advocated against federal or state subsidies for clean energy. The comments mirrored efforts by Republican leaders in recent years to fight against clean energy mandates while allowing the free market to decide the fate of wind and solar energies.
“I’m a free market guy,” Kehoe said. “I’m not sure the residential end user will want to pay more for renewables but if these larger corporations are willing to pay more and to invest in it, then ‘giddy-up,’ let’s get at it.”
The three governors participated in the 65th annual conference held at The Grand Hotel in Point Clear. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey introduced the panel ahead of the three-day conference.
A.I. investments
The panel discussion comes as A.I. technologies, and the energy required to power data centers, becomes a dominant policy issue facing state and local governments. It is also a matter of taxation, as states race to incentivize companies to build energy-consuming data centers amid criticism of potential insufficient returns on investment.
Alabama, like other Southern states, has become an emerging future home for large-scale datacenters. Meta, earlier this month, announced it was investing $1.5 million into 1.3 million square foot data center in Montgomery to accommodate artificial intelligence. The company operates Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp.
The University of Alabama, earlier this year, announced it was spending up to $100 million on a data center for A.I. needs including a BamaGPT for students.
Kemp, who vetoed a two-year pause on a sales tax break for data centers last year, said he believes the investment by states and its focus on A.I. is worth it. The governor noted a conversation he had with a county official in Georgia who said he believes that the development of a data center has the potential to “bring in so much revenue” that it could “wipe out the property taxes for an entire community.”
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves joins Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp as the participants during the 10th annual Governors Energy Caucus as part of the 65th annual Southern States Convention held on Monday, Sept. 29, 2025, at The Grand Hotel in Point Clear, Ala.John Sharp
Reeves said in Mississippi, the potential exists for property tax relief with the addition of A.I. facilities such as the xAI complex in Whitehaven, Tenn. – just north of the Mississippi-Tennessee border.
He said the potential exists for “astronomical” job growth, and the ability to relieve pressure on state governments.
The race to lure data centers to their states comes amid pushback over tax incentives to lure investments from some of the wealthiest companies in the United States. According to an analysis by CBNC, the beneficiaries of state exemptions are tech giants such as Amazon, Meta and Google, which all have market caps of over $1 trillion.
In Alabama in 2015, Google received up to $50 million over 10 years for the build out of a large data center at a former coal plant in Jackson County. Alabama legislation last year, which did not win approval, would have added $400 million in tax incentives for data processing centers.
The pushback against the activity in other states appears to come from local communities, where concerns exist over pollution that data centers could produce.
Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe joints Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp as participants in the 10th annual Governors Energy Caucus as part of the 65th annual Southern States Convention held on Monday, Sept. 29, 2025, at The Grand Hotel in Point Clear, Ala.John Sharp
Kehoe said there is uncertainty over what a data center does, creating worries among residents and local resistance toward expansion projects.
“The industry, along with us, has to do a good job so that there is not a fear factor built into projects going forward,” he said. “We’ve seen A.I. tested enough, these data centers tested enough, and the capital that are used in these facilities … this is not a short-term deal. The investment is so substantial that anyone on a board of directors of these companies that authorizes these (data center) investments understands it’s a long-term strategy.”
Workforce development
Kemp called the potential job growth from the facilities a “game changer” for rural Southern towns often struggling with declining populations and a loss of manufacturing jobs and health care facilities.
But another challenge exists in having a workforce prepared for high-demand jobs, while other longtime professions face uncertainty amid A.I.’s influence.
The challenge, he said, is having a workforce ready for the jobs.
“There are a lot of challenges here,” Kemp said. “We need 500,000 electricians to build out transmission lines and data center work. We also need 150,000 machinists … what do we do with the kids coming out of college? Where do we re-plug them into the workforce with a good-paying job?”
Energy efficiency
The governors also advocated for marketplace decisions when it comes to utilizing clean energy to power the data centers.
Kemp said a large data center to support Meta, built eight years ago, was upgraded and is now powered by clean solar power.
“We ask our companies, ‘what do you want?’” Kemp said. “Do you want clean energy? Do want it to come from solar or whatever else? The utilities will figure that piece out for them and that is what we’re doing in Georgia. We’ll help those customers.”
Concerns are arising over the potential for A.I. to become one of the largest consumers of energy in the world as the activity of building data centers ratchets up. These energy concerns focus on sustainability, the electrical grid, water usage and emissions.
“Hopefully, 10 years from now, a data center will use 5 to 10 percent (less) electricity than it’s using now,” Kemp said. “And hopefully a whole lot less water.”
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