A nuclear energy campus proposed for privately owned land along the Ohio River in Lewis County could become Kentucky's first commercial nuclear power project, with plans for up to six reactors capable of producing a combined 6.6 gigawatts of electricity. The developer, The Nuclear Company, is targeting construction in 2028, though the project still faces technical studies, permits and a lengthy federal licensing process before any reactor could be built.
The proposed site, known as Prosperity One, would rise on a stretch of land called Carrs Bottom, according to WKYT, which reported on the sprawling energy campus along the Ohio River. The station notes the project could eventually host up to six Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear reactors producing a combined 6.6 gigawatts of power — a configuration that, if ever fully realized, would make it Kentucky's first commercial nuclear power project.
More than 4,200 acres at Carrs Bottom are now owned outright or under option as the company evaluates the site, the station's report notes, citing figures reported by the Lewis County Herald. Each of the proposed AP1000 reactors is capable of generating approximately 1,100 megawatts of electricity, and the paper is careful to point out that the headline 6.6-gigawatt figure represents a maximum potential buildout — not a guarantee that all six units will be approved or constructed.
Jobs Pitch Comes With a Long Road to Approval
The company says a fully built campus could create thousands of construction jobs along with hundreds of long-term operating positions at each individual reactor, per the same account from the station's reporting. But that promise hinges entirely on a process that has barely begun: initial activities are expected to include detailed site characterization, geotechnical investigations, environmental assessments, transmission interconnection planning and preparation for federal nuclear licensing, according to World Nuclear News.
The Nuclear Company is seeking federal approvals with hopes of beginning site construction by 2028, as reported by the Kentucky Lantern. No utility partner or specific electricity customer has been identified, and the companies have not announced how power generated at Prosperity One would ultimately be sold, according to the Lewis County Herald's reporting on what the announcement means and what comes next.
County Already Moved to Court the Project
Lewis County leaders weren't waiting around for a formal proposal to take a side. County leaders unanimously initiated an effort in July to pursue nuclear-ready community designation under Kentucky's nuclear development authority, according to POWER Magazine. That vote came months before Prosperity One was formally unveiled. Community leaders were not aware of The Nuclear Company's proposal when they began seeking the designation; the effort reflected broader interest in nuclear development. Some residents have since raised concerns about safety, public notification and the pace at which plans have moved forward.
Kentucky currently has no operating nuclear reactors or fuel-cycle facilities, and the state is classified as an Agreement State by the federal government, according to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Before any reactor could be built, the company would need to submit a formal application for a major licensing action — a process the NRC says begins when a company notifies the agency of its intent and lays out the project's scope and projected timeline, per the agency's pre-application guidance.
Comparisons to a Troubled Georgia Project
If all six reactors were eventually built, Prosperity One would have considerably more generating capacity than Georgia's Plant Vogtle, the nation's largest nuclear plant, which has four reactors and approximately 4,530 megawatts of net summer capacity, according to the Lewis County Herald. The comparison is notable given who is behind the new venture: The Nuclear Company was formed by hiring former managers who oversaw construction of the Vogtle AP1000 project, according to Heatmap News.
That pedigree cuts both ways. Vogtle's two most recently built reactors didn't come online until 2023 and 2024, following seven years of delays and $17 billion in cost overruns, the Kentucky Lantern reports. Whether Prosperity One can avoid a similar fate remains an open question, since the project's expected cost, financing structure and completion timeline have not been disclosed.
