Reporting by Sarah Weitzman at Spectrum News 1 and the staff of Nuclear News at the American Nuclear Society.
A nuclear developer wants to build up to six Westinghouse AP1000 reactors on the Ohio River in Lewis County, Kentucky. The project would bring about 5,000 jobs at peak construction, according to Spectrum News 1.
The developer is The Nuclear Company. The project is called Prosperity One. If it is built in full, it would be the largest nuclear generation site in the United States and Kentucky's first commercial nuclear power plant.
What Happened
The Nuclear Company announced Prosperity One on October 21. The plan calls for up to six AP1000 units, about 6.6 gigawatts in total, on a site in Carrs Bottom near Vanceburg in eastern Kentucky.
The company would start with two units, subject to site studies, licensing, a grid connection agreement and financing, according to Nuclear News. Construction is targeted to begin in 2028, pending federal approvals.
At six units, Prosperity One would pass Plant Vogtle in Georgia, which has four reactors and is the largest nuclear site in the country today, per Nuclear News.
The Jobs
Spectrum News 1 reported about 5,000 jobs at the peak of construction. The company has not yet published a breakdown between construction jobs and permanent operating jobs, and it has not released a payroll or tax estimate. It says the project will bring new tax revenue to the state and the county.
The trades that build an AP1000 are the trades in short supply nationally: pipefitters, welders, electricians, ironworkers and boilermakers. A multi-unit build on one site means years of steady work for the same crews.
That shortage is the national backdrop. The Alliance for America's Skilled Trades, launched in July by BlackRock, Carhartt, Ford and Google, estimates that 2.1 million skilled trades positions could go unfilled by 2030, including electrical workers and technicians. Positive Current covered that launch in July. A project with a 2028 start gives Kentucky schools and union halls time to train for it.
For Lewis County, the jobs are the reason the county is doing this. Sam Howard, a lifelong Lewis County resident who owns the site and partnered with the company, said it in personal terms in the company's release.
"I have nine grandchildren, and all of them live in Lewis County. I want them to have the opportunity to stay," Howard said.
Why This Site
The company says it looked across the country before picking Lewis County.
"We looked at hundreds of sites across the United States, and this is by far the best one we found," Joe Klecha, chief nuclear officer at The Nuclear Company, told Spectrum News 1.
The site covers more than 1,000 acres along the Ohio River, part of it owned by Howard, according to Spectrum. Howard acquired 738 acres in Carrs Bottom over the summer, according to the Lewis County Herald as cited by Nuclear News. The location and a nearby 765-kilovolt transmission line were cited as key advantages. Howard described the line as the largest in the country.
Klecha tied the project to the region's history. "For generations, communities along the Ohio River have formed America's industrial backbone," he said in the release.
The Local Path
Lewis County did its homework before the announcement. The county launched a nuclear-ready community effort in July 2026, held public input meetings, and voted in October to submit its filing to the Kentucky Nuclear Energy Development Authority, according to the company. That designation is the state's process for communities that want to host nuclear projects.
The company says its planning will cover transportation, housing, environmental stewardship, emergency preparedness and water use, and that it will hold outreach events where residents can visit the site and ask questions.
The Reactor
The AP1000 is a Westinghouse pressurized water reactor. Six units at about 6.6 gigawatts works out to roughly 1,100 megawatts per unit. It is the same design that runs at Vogtle Units 3 and 4 in Georgia, which entered commercial operation in 2023 and 2024 and were the first new reactors built in the United States in decades.
That matters for the workforce. The crews, supervisors and supply chain that finished Vogtle learned the AP1000 on the job. A second AP1000 site gives that experience a place to go, and it lets Kentucky hire against a design that has already been built here.
Who Is Building It
The Nuclear Company is a project development firm. Its services division has performed maintenance at more than 40 percent of America's operating nuclear plants, per the release.
Klecha brings 33 years in nuclear, including service on U.S. Navy submarines, work as a licensed senior reactor operator, and leadership roles on Vogtle Units 3 and 4.
Nuclear News also noted that Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has said Kentucky would receive some reactors under a U.S. and South Korea investment agreement. The Nuclear Company did not say whether Prosperity One is part of that deal.
What to Watch
- Site characterization, geotechnical work and environmental studies, the first work on the ground.
- The state's decision on Lewis County's nuclear-ready filing.
- A grid connection agreement and a licensing application with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
- Financing partners and a formal jobs and tax estimate, which the company has not yet released.
- Training partnerships with Kentucky community and technical colleges ahead of a 2028 start.
Sources
- Sarah Weitzman, "Proposed nuclear campus in Lewis County could be largest in U.S.," Spectrum News 1, October 21, 2026.
- "Six AP1000 reactors eyed for Kentucky nuclear power facility," Nuclear News, American Nuclear Society, October 22, 2026.
- The Nuclear Company, "The Nuclear Company Announces Prosperity One, a 6.6 Gigawatt Nuclear Power Campus in Lewis County, Kentucky," PR Newswire, October 21, 2026.
Reliable power. Affordable power. Great jobs.
Tips and corrections: amos.snead@positivecurrent.com
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