NOLA resilience plan: Entergy New Orleans has broken ground on a grid-hardening project that will replace 94 distribution poles, strengthen 1.6 miles of power lines and add targeted vegetation management in the Leonidas area, benefiting more than 1,900 customers. The project is supported by a $2.05 million U.S. Department of Energy grant and is projected to avoid $7.4 million in outage-related and restoration costs over 50 years. The work is part of Entergy New Orleans’ broader $100 million Phase 1 resilience plan, which includes 63 projects to upgrade nearly 3,100 structures and 63 electrical line miles across the city by the end of 2026. Entergy New Orleans has the full story.
Slight bump: Louisiana’s initial unemployment insurance claims rose to 1,204 for the week ending Sept. 19, up from 1,149 the previous week but nearly 19% below the 1,485 claims filed during the same week last year. The four-week average of initial claims fell to 1,245, while continued unemployment insurance claims dropped to 5,986, about 30% below the 8,589 recorded a year earlier. The Center Square has the full story.
Economic mood sours: U.S. consumer confidence fell 6.7 points to 81.9 in September, its lowest level since April 2014, as Americans expressed growing concerns about high prices, wages and the economy. The Conference Board said views of both current business conditions and the short-term outlook deteriorated, while consumers reported persistent concerns about the cost of gas, goods and services. The decline comes as inflation remains elevated, wage growth has slowed and borrowing costs have risen, adding pressure to household spending and business activity. The Associated Press has the full story.
