Cleco Earns 2026 Top Utility EDO Award from Business Facilities Magazine
Business Facilities, a leading source of news and trends for site selection decision-makers, has announced its 2026 class of Economic Development Organization (EDO) Awards. Now in its fourth year, the Business Facilities EDO Awards program shines a spotlight on innovative and impactful economic development programs and initiatives. From broad industry-wide initiatives to targeted programs to support business, the awards represent an array of solutions across locations and industries.
“The 2026 EDO Awards reflect how economic development strategies are evolving to deliver the types of resources and solutions businesses are seeking,” said Anne Cosgrove, Editorial Director for Business Facilities. “From utilizing AI tools to workforce development and from market outreach initiatives to site readiness, this year’s entries showcase the innovation and collaboration driving economic growth. We are proud to recognize the organizations featured in our May/June 2026 issue for their focus on fostering competitive economies.”
Cleco was highlighted among the three utility EDO award winners for its innovative AI-driven economic development platform designed to transform engagement with site selectors, consultants, and companies evaluating new locations. Built around a custom Large Language Model (LLM), the program enables real-time access to economic development information. The platform integrates Cleco’s data—including infrastructure capacity, utility rates, workforce metrics, available sites, and incentive programs—into a single intelligent system. By drawing from Cleco’s fact books, project data, and integrated partner resources, the platform can generate precise insights about costs, infrastructure readiness, and workforce availability. Through integrated data connections with Cleco’s website, partner organizations, and site selection tools such as ZoomProspector, the AI serves as a shared knowledge hub that ensures unified project information and access to regional assets.