Paducah site draws DOE AI/data-center interest; county official says decision expected soon
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Summary
Greater Paducah Economic Development told the McCracken County Fiscal Court that the DOE received roughly 17 submissions for AI/data-center work at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant site and that a partner selection announcement is anticipated soon; the presentation outlined power, water and environmental considerations for the heavily reviewed Superfund site.
A representative of Greater Paducah Economic Development updated the McCracken County Fiscal Court on Wednesday about ongoing federal and industry interest in the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP) site, saying the Department of Energy received requests for offers on Jan. 30 and that a selection announcement is likely soon.
"Heinz Furlong announced a $10,000,000 expansion here in Paducah," the GPED representative said, describing recent economic announcements and outreach. The representative said GPED co-hosted a DOE Artificial Intelligence Industry Day on Dec. 18 that attracted about 75 in-person attendees and additional online participants and that roughly 17 companies — from small firms to large corporations — submitted offers to DOE.
The GPED representative cautioned that the county had not been formally selected as a site partner and urged the public and media not to treat press reports as a final award. He outlined site attributes that make PGDP attractive for large-scale data centers: multiple power-transmission owners connected to the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), available transmission capacity at times, and proximity to a trunk natural-gas line. He also noted an existing 30,000,000-gallon-per-day water pump permitted during the site's prior operation.
On technical and environmental points, the representative said many data centers plan closed-loop cooling systems that recirculate water within facilities rather than continuously diverting large volumes from local supplies. The site, he added, is a long-studied Superfund/brownfield location from decades of uranium-enrichment activity and thus has a high level of environmental review.
Speakers at the meeting said DOE lease terms discussed in other meetings — attributed in the transcript to Tim Walsh, deputy secretary for environmental management — would require any lessee to provide or fund its own power supply (and related transmission upgrades) so the project would not draw down existing customer service or raise local rates. GPED and court members discussed the possibility of interim purchases from the regional grid while new generation is sited and permitted.
The GPED representative also said expressions of interest were due Feb. 19 for remediation contractors for nickel contamination at the DOE site; he estimated about 9,700 tons of contaminated nickel remain onsite and said the county expected additional news on remediation and supply-chain partnerships in the near term.
Why it matters: a large data center and associated power generation could bring construction jobs and long-term facility operations to the region, but local officials said environmental remediation, power siting, and lease terms will shape the scale and timing of any new investment.
The presentation concluded with an acknowledgment that some project details will be discussed in executive session. The court then moved on to other agenda items, including a contract for animal services and several routine orders.
