Project leaders share details of DOE Paducah Site's $100B AI energy hub - WPSD Local 6

PADUCAH — The U.S. Department of Energy announced a $100 billion private investment at the DOE Paducah Site for an AI data center campus with a designated energy infrastructure Wednesday.

The Paducah American Energy Hub — a partnership with Brookfield, NextEra Energy, Big Rivers Electric Corporation, Jackson Purchase Energy Cooperative and Paducah Power System — is one of the largest investments in the history of Kentucky and is expected to create roughly 8,000 construction jobs and 600 permanent jobs.

Brookfield — a global alternative asset management and investment company that manages over $1 trillion in capital — has leased 785 acres from the DOE Paducah to build, finance and operate the AI data center. NextEra Energy Resources will be responsible for building and supplying the energy infrastructure, Big Rivers Electric Corporation will provide wholesale electric service to the site with Jackson Purchase Energy Cooperative delivering retail service and Paducah Power System serving as a community supporter. Commercial operation dates for the data center and battery energy storage system components of the project are expected as early as 2028, while the natural gas generation component is expected as early as 2032.

During an announcement event at the site, CEOs from the companies involved in the Paducah American Energy Hub project, as well as DOE Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management Tim Walsh, Rep. Andy Barr and U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright discussed its potential impact on Paducah and the United States as well as addressed common concerns about AI data centers.

The project is consistent with the Trump administration’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge that requires that the project’s energy generation and storage capacity exceed the amount needed to power the AI data center. According to a release from the DOE, the AI data center campus will require 1.8 gigawatts of energy, while NextEra Energy plans to develop 2 GW of new grid-connected natural gas-fired generation and deploy up to 2.6 GW of battery energy storage.

“We're building energy infrastructure specifically designed for this data center campus,” John W. Ketchum, CEO of NextEra Energy, said. ”Those costs will be borne by the project itself, not by anyone else here in western Kentucky. We often describe this as a 'bring your own generation' approach, and we believe it represents a responsible path forward for meeting America's growth and their needs. It's a model that supports economic development while protecting existing customers, it's a model that brings new generation resources onto the grid while enhancing reliability and it's a model that ensures that communities see the benefits of growth without having to shoulder the cost.”

Barr claimed in his remarks that excess energy flowing back into the regional power grid will help reduce energy costs for Kentucky families and businesses long term. He also touted that the project will put the DOE Paducah Site in a position to help the United States in a global race for AI advancement.

“During the Cold War, [the site] helped power America's national security at one of the most consequential moments in our history,” Barr said. “Now it begins a new mission. A place that once helped America win the Cold War will now help America win the AI race, and that's exactly the vision President Trump laid out in America's AI Action Plan. The president challenged our country to accelerate American innovation, build the infrastructure to power the AI revolution and ensure that America, not China, leads the world in this defining technology. [...] The nation that leads in AI will lead the global economy and the nation that wins the race for AI dominance will set the rules.”

Following the event, local leaders spoke to WPSD Local 6 about the project. Bruce Wilcox, President of Greater Paducah Economic Development, addressed concerns about the AI data center’s water use, explaining that it will use a water system that recirculates after a two million gallon initial fill, and does not require constant water consumption for cooling. Additional water use will be required for the power generation aspect of the project.

“The technology that they are using will be a closed loop technology system which recirculates the water, probably a couple million gallons a year,” Wilcox said. “Depending upon how you look at the natural gas combined cycle plant, it should be less than 5 million gallons a year. That might seem like a lot to a lot of folks, but when you take into consideration that approximately 162 billion gallons flows by the Ohio River every day, 59 trillion gallons a year, it's not even a rounding error.”

McCracken County Judge Executive Craig Clymer said the project will bring significant tax revenue to the county.

“We're going to receive property tax revenue,” Clymer said. “We're going to receive occupational tax revenue. With the amount of revenue that's going to come off of a $100 billion dollar buildout here, and the number of jobs, along with all the other things that are happening here, the county treasury is going to be greatly increased. The schools tax [property] at five times what the county does, so the schools are having enormous opportunities for growth and development, as will our fire departments and our library. It's going to bring massive wealth into our county and community, so we're really excited about that.”

Clymer said as the project develops, the county will need to take steps to accommodate housing and traffic demand. He said that county leadership has been talking with developers.

“We're looking at developing anything from small camping trailers on up to large homes and everything in between,” Clymer said. “We're going to need several thousand housing units, and we're getting that done. I also chair the Paducah-McCracken County Industrial Development Authority and we're looking at building more roads, how to move people about, lessening congestion and that sort of thing.”

Paducah Mayor George Bray said the city is also talking with developers daily to try to accommodate housing needs for projects at the DOE Paducah Site and called for more collaboration between the city and county on those efforts. Bray also said he understands community members’ concerns about an AI data center being built in McCracken County, but feels it is an important step forward for the region and honors the original purpose of the DOE Paducah Site.

“I understand people's wariness and concern, but we have researched this,” Bray said. “We understand what's going to happen here. We believe that this is the next step in U.S. energy dominance. We have a responsibility to redevelop this site. There's U.S. patriots out there who worked at the Gaseous Diffusion Plant for so many years and gave themselves, and now it's up to us to honor them and redevelop the site.”