A. The Authority shall have all of the rights and powers necessary to carry out and effectuate the purposes and provisions of this chapter. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Authority, as a political subdivision of the state of Louisiana with full corporate powers, shall have the following rights and powers:

            (1) To adopt by-laws or rules for the regulation of its affairs and the conduct of its business.

            (2) To adopt an official seal and alter the same at its pleasure.

            (3) To maintain an office at such place or places as it may designate.

            (4) To sue and be sued.

            (5) To receive, administer and comply with the conditions and requirements respecting any gift, grant or donation of any property or money.

            (6) To study, plan, research, develop, finance, construct, reconstruct, acquire, improve, enlarge, extend, better, lease, own, operate and maintain, any project or any interest in any project, within or without the state, including the acquisition of an undivided ownership interest in any project with any other unit or units whether public or private, and to enter into and perform contracts with respect thereto, and if the Authority acquires an undivided ownership interest in any project within the State, the surrender or waiver by any such owners of their rights to partition or expropriate such property for a period not exceeding the period for which the property is used or useful for electric utility purposes shall not be invalid and unenforceable by reason of length of such period or as unduly restricting the alienation of such property.

            (7) To acquire by purchase or lease or otherwise an existing project, a project under construction, or other property, within the state, either individually or jointly with any other unit or units whether public or private and to acquire by purchase or lease or otherwise any facilities for the development, production, manufacture, procurement, handling, transportation, storage, fabrication, enrichment, processing or reprocessing of fuel of any kind or any facility or rights with respect to the supply of water, and to enter into agreements for such period as the Authority shall determine, for the development, production, manufacture, procurement, handling, storage, fabrication, enrichment, processing or reprocessing of fuel of any kind or any facility or rights with respect to the supply of water.

            (8) To acquire by purchase, lease, gift, or otherwise, or to obtain options for the acquisition of, any property, real or personal, improved or unimproved, including an interest in land less than the fee thereof.

            (9) To sell, lease, exchange, transfer or otherwise dispose of, or to grant options for any such purposes with respect to, any real or personal property or interest therein.

            (10) To dispose of by sale or lease or otherwise an existing project, a project under construction, or other property owned either individually or jointly, and to dispose of by sale or lease or otherwise any facilities for the development, production, manufacture, procurement, handling, transportation, storage, fabrication, enrichment, processing or reprocessing of fuel of any kind or any facility or rights with respect to supply of water.

            (11) To borrow money and issue revenue bonds of the Authority in the manner hereinafter provided.

            (12) To accept advice and money from any municipality directly interested in the affairs or operations of the Authority or facilities owned or operated by the Authority.

            (13) To apply and contract for and to expend assistance from the United States or other public or private sources, whether in form of a grant or loan or otherwise.

            (14) To fix, charge and collect rents, rates, fees and charges for output or capacity of any project and for the use of or for the other services, facilities and commodities sold, furnished or supplied through any project.

            (15) To authorize the acquisition, construction, operation or maintenance of any project by any unit or individual on such terms as the Authority shall deem proper, and, in connection with any project which is owned jointly by the Authority and one or more units, to act as agent, or designate one or more of the other units to act as agent, for all the owners of the project for the construction, operation or maintenance of such project.

            (16) To generate, produce, transmit, deliver, exchange, purchase or sell electric power and energy at wholesale, and to enter into contracts for any or all such purposes.

            (17) To enter into contracts for the purchase, sale, exchange, interchange, wheeling, pooling or transmission, storage of electric power and energy and fuel with any unit within or without the state.

            (18) To purchase power and energy and related services from any source on behalf of any participating municipalities and to sell the same to participating municipalities in such amounts, with such characteristics, for such periods of time and under such terms and conditions as the Authority shall determine.

            (19) In the event of any annexation of lands, areas, or territory in which the Authority’s projects exist by the state or a political subdivision, to continue to do business and to exercise jurisdiction over its properties and facilities in and upon or over such lands, areas or territory as long as any bonds remain outstanding or unpaid, or any contracts or other obligations remain in force.

            (20) To amend the by-laws with respect to the powers of the Authority or in any other manner not inconsistent with this Chapter.

            (21) To enter into contracts with any participating municipality on such terms as the Authority shall deem proper for the purpose of acting as a billing and collecting agent with respect to wholesale electric service or wholesale electric fees, rents or charges imposed by or charged to any such participating municipality.

            (22) To pledge or assign any moneys, fees, rents, charges or other revenues and any proceeds derived by the Authority from the sales of bonds, property, insurance or condemnation awards and any contracts or other rights of the Authority.

            (23) To make and execute contracts and other instruments necessary in the exercise of the powers and functions of the Authority under this Chapter, including contracts with persons, firms, corporations and others.

            (24) To apply to the appropriate agencies of the state, the United States or any state thereof, and to any other proper agency for such permits, licenses, certificates or approvals as may be necessary, and to construct, maintain and operate projects in accordance with such licenses, permits, certificates or approvals, and to obtain, hold and use such licenses, permits, certificates and approvals in the same manner as any other person or operating unit of any other person.

            (25) To employ a general manager, employees, engineers, architects, attorneys, accountants, real estate counselors, appraisers, underwriters, financial advisors and such other consultants as may be required in the judgment of the Authority and to fix and pay their compensation from funds available to the Authority therefor, and

            (26) To do all acts and things necessary to carry out the purposes and to exercise the powers granted to the Authority herein.

            B. In determining which project or projects to undertake in furtherance of its purposes and powers under this Chapter, the Authority may take into account estimated future power requirements of governmental units which have entered into, or propose to enter into, contracts with the Authority for the purchase of its present or future requirements of power and energy, including the output, capacity, use or services of such project or projects, and in making such determination the Authority may consider the following:

            (1) The economies and efficiencies to be achieved in constructing on a large scale facilities for the generation and transmission of electric power and energy.

            (2) Needs of the Authority for reserve and peaking capacity and to meet obligations under pooling and reserve-sharing agreements reasonably related to its needs for power and energy to which the Authority is or may become a party.

            (3) The estimated useful life of such project.

            (4) The estimated time necessary for the planning, development, acquisition, or construction of such project and the length of time required in advance to obtain, acquire or construct additional power supply for the needs of the Authority, and

            (5) The reliability and availability of alternative power supply sources and the cost of such alternative power supply sources.

            C. Nothing herein contained shall prevent the Authority from undertaking studies to determine whether there is a need for a project or whether such project is feasible.

            D. All commodity purchases made by the Authority and service contracts awarded by such Authority shall be transacted pursuant to the procedures outlined in Part V of Chapter 1 of Title 39 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes. All consulting, professional, and personal services procured by the Authority shall be awarded pursuant to the procedures outlined in Chapter 17 of Subtitle III of Title 39 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes.

            Added by Acts 1979, No. 772, §1, eff. July 20, 1979; Acts 2014, No. 864, §§4 and 5.