An investor-owned developer looking to build a hyperscale data center at an idled Hancock County aluminum smelter says it’s committing to the governor’s requirements to pay its share of taxes, follow environmental laws and “build a meaningful relationship” with the community.
That’s according to an “energy plan” that TeraWulf filed before the state utility regulator Kentucky Public Service Commission on Aug. 14. Developer TeraWulf said the plan is a part of complying with an executive order issued by Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.
The governor said his executive order would implement an array of protections against the potential impacts of data centers, though some experts have questioned how much legal “teeth” his order has without the backing of specific state laws addressing data centers.
Still, TeraWulf wrote in its Aug. 14 filing it was committing to the governor’s demands laid out in the order.
“TeraWulf is committed to invest billions of dollars in Kentucky to construct a state-of-the-art data center which will provide significant economic benefits to Hancock County and its school system,” the company wrote in its plan. “TeraWulf takes Governor Beshear’s executive order, the commission approval process, its commitment to the local community, and its commitment to the commonwealth very seriously.”
TeraWulf wants to build a 482-megawatt hyperscale data center at the site of the former Century Aluminum smelter that halted operations in 2022, a project that has the backing of artificial intelligence company Anthropic. It also wants to build another hyperscale data center at an Eastern Kentucky industrial park, telling investors recently it wants to expand the size of it.
The Kentucky Public Service Commission is considering whether to approve a special electricity contract for the Hancock County project with electric utility Big Rivers Electric Corporation. Hancock County residents have voiced strong concerns to the commission about, among other issues, the potential local environmental impacts of the data center.
Beshear’s executive order seeks to implement a number of protections against the impacts of data centers by requiring them to commit to “paying their full and fair share of state and local taxes” and to engage in fully transparent and public discussions with a community where the developer wants to locate.
Additionally, the order requires data center developers to submit an energy plan to the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet, the state’s environmental regulator, explaining how the developer would source its electricity and protect residential ratepayers from being burdened with costs. TeraWulf wrote it had also submitted a copy of its energy plan to the cabinet.
Addressing the commitments in the executive order, TeraWulf wrote it would get its electricity from the MISO regional energy grid through a “carefully structured” contract with the Big Rivers Electric Corporation. The company also wrote that its operations would generate tens of millions of local tax revenue.
In an Aug. 7 comment filed to the Public Service Commission, an attorney for an enviornmental legal group raised several concerns he had about uncertainties with the proposed special contract for TeraWulf, though he didn’t weigh in on whether the commission should approve the contract.
Kentucky Resources Council Attorney Byron Gary, who also filed his comment on behalf of the advocacy nonprofit Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, wrote that neither TeraWulf nor the Big Rivers Electric Corporation had conducted an “independent” economic analysis of the proposed project. He also asked the commission to examine the allocation of costs of regional electricity transmission upgrades — and whether other ratepayers would pay for it — spurred by the project.
Included with TeraWulf’s plan is an Aug. 13 letter from Hancock County Judge-Executive Johnny Roberts, where he writes to the Energy and Environment Cabinet and the commission that the company has demonstrated “transparency, open communication, and genuine community engagement.”
“While every large infrastructure project deserves careful evaluation, I believe Tera Wulf has demonstrated the character, transparency, and commitment that is required by the executive order, and that Kentucky should encourage the same for other data center projects,” Roberts wrote in the provided letter. “They have earned my confidence through their actions, and we are excited about the opportunity to welcome them into our community.”
This article is republished under a Creative Commons license from Kentucky Lantern, which is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kentucky Lantern maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jamie Lucke for questions: info@kentuckylantern.com. Follow Kentucky Lantern on Facebook and Twitter.
Liam Niemeyer covers government and policy in Kentucky and its impacts throughout the Commonwealth for the Kentucky Lantern. He most recently spent four years reporting award-winning stories for WKMS Public Radio in Murray.
