GPED: Marquette deal, AES solar and DOE site work could bring jobs and investment to Paducah area

Bruce Wilcox, a representative of Greater Paducah Economic Development (GPED), told the McCracken County Fiscal Court on May 27 that the agency has advanced several projects that it says could add jobs and capital investment to the Paducah area.

Wilcox said Marquette Transportation purchased about a 5-acre tract in Commerce Park, and that the company will bring about 55 jobs and roughly $5,000,000 in capital investment. "We anticipate utilizing the IMPLAN economic modeling software that that project is to have over an $18,300,000 recurring annual economic benefit to the community," Wilcox said.

Wilcox also reported work with AES Energy on a roughly $130,000,000 solar project in the Keble area. He said the project was granted a rezoning and a conditional-use permit and has an off-take agreement with Walmart. "It's about a $130,000,000 capital investment. It'll be 2 permanent full-time jobs. A good number of construction jobs," Wilcox said, adding an estimated construction impact of about $14,000,000.

On federal-site opportunities, Wilcox said Paducah was listed among 16 locations in a Department of Energy request for information seeking sites for artificial-intelligence data centers on federal or former DOE properties. He said GPED submitted a community letter of interest and expects the DOE to request proposals next from companies that express specific interest in Paducah.

Wilcox described other DOE-related activity: Global Laser Enrichment (GLE) is in the licensing process with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and GPED continues to pursue a Trillium H2 hydrogen project Wilcox said is a roughly $1,800,000,000 initiative that, if it proceeds, could secure a couple of hundred acres by late third quarter or fourth quarter of the year.

Wilcox said GPED repurchased a parcel in Industrial Park West that had been sold previously with a clawback provision; he said the parcel is about 3.7 acres with roughly 3 acres buildable. He also said the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development selected the local spec-building application for a $2,000,000 grant award and that GPED will begin site due diligence and engineering work.

On workforce and pipeline numbers, Wilcox said the Marquette deal and other activity bring the county’s tally "up to 965 jobs," with induced and indirect jobs raising the total by his estimate. He said average pay on those projects is "over $52,000 a year" and that the projects represent several hundred million dollars in capital investment, noting that some figures are preliminary and based on economic-modeling estimates.

Wilcox described long-standing constraints and recent changes related to contaminated metals at the DOE Paducah site, saying a federal moratorium on contaminated-metal sales was recently lifted. He discussed nickel and used uranium on the site as potential assets that could support local cleanup and reuse activity, but he cautioned that disposition details and federal decisions remain unresolved. "I do not" know where proceeds, if any, would go, he said.

Court members asked questions about whether the Marquette jobs were new or transfers; Wilcox answered they would be new positions. On AES and permit status, he said rezoning and conditional-use steps were completed but that construction permits and other detailed approvals likely remained to be obtained.

Wilcox closed by thanking county officials and partners, and the court responded with brief remarks.

Why it matters: GPED’s update details projects that, if built, would affect local employment, county tax and infrastructure planning, and work tied to the Paducah DOE site. Several proposals remain contingent on federal approvals, corporate decisions and additional permitting.

Sources: Presentation by Bruce Wilcox, GPED, to the McCracken County Fiscal Court meeting on May 27, 2025.