Utilities report as many as 30 data centers under discussion in Kentucky
Kentucky communities are anticipating the potential arrival of numerous hyperscale data centers, prompting concerns about electricity and water usage, property values, and noise pollution. Utilities are reporting significant interest from data center projects, with some deemed imminent, while state efforts to pass legislation requiring data centers to cover infrastructure costs have failed.
Kentucky is facing a surge of interest from hyperscale data center developers, with Louisville Gas and Electric (LG&E) and Kentucky Utilities (KU) reporting as many as 29 potential projects and an estimated 12 gigawatts of electricity demand in their pipeline. Eleven of these projects have a 50% or greater chance of materializing, with four considered "imminent," including a planned site in West Louisville.
This prospective development has raised significant concerns among Kentuckians regarding potential impacts on electricity bills, water usage for cooling, property values, noise pollution, and the transformation of rural land. Critics, such as Byron Gary of Kentucky Resources Council, question the utilities' methodology for assessing the likelihood of these projects and whether the revenue generated will offset the costs to serve them without burdening other ratepayers.
State lawmakers have previously offered sales tax breaks to attract data centers but have not enacted regulations addressing their fiscal and environmental costs. A bill requiring data centers to cover their own electricity and water infrastructure costs failed in the recent legislative session. Meanwhile, LG&E and KU are planning to invest billions in new gas-fired power plants and keeping an old coal unit open, partly to meet the projected demand from these data centers. LG&E and KU spokesperson Liz Pratt defended their economic development approach, stating it's grounded in established practices and that imminent projects are tied to specific actions and commitments.