Building Prosperity
For Northeast Kentucky

Trace Creek today announced its teaming partnership with The Nuclear Company to advance Prosperity One, a proposed nuclear energy campus in Lewis County, Kentucky, that could accommodate up to six Westinghouse AP1000 reactors generating approximately 6.6 gigawatts of electricity.

The proposed development, located along the Ohio River, would become the largest nuclear power campus in the United States and one of the largest in the world if fully constructed. It would also establish Kentucky’s first commercial nuclear power generation site.

Sam Howard, a lifelong resident of Lewis County, has partnered with The Nuclear Company to move the development forward. Howard has long advocated for large-scale infrastructure investment that can create sustained economic opportunity in a county where the employment rate has historically been among the highest in the state.

“I have nine grandchildren, and all of them live in Lewis County. I want them to have the opportunity to stay,” said Howard. “For years, our county’s employment rate has been among the highest in the state. An infrastructure development like this could provide jobs and economic opportunities for generations of Eastern Kentucky residents. I am proud to help advance this effort.”

Lewis County will be among Kentucky’s first counties to request designation as a Nuclear Ready Community under the Kentucky Nuclear Energy Development Authority. County leaders launched the effort in July 2026, held public input meetings, and earlier this month voted overwhelmingly to submit the county’s filing.

“For generations, communities along the Ohio River have formed America’s industrial backbone,” said Joe Klecha, Chief Nuclear Officer for The Nuclear Company. “We are proud to partner with the community to apply our team’s collective experience to deliver lasting jobs, a stronger tax base, and reliable power for Kentucky.”

Klecha, a former licensed senior reactor operator with 33 years of nuclear experience spanning U.S. Navy nuclear submarines and operations leadership at major U.S. nuclear fleets, including construction and operational readiness roles at Vogtle Units 3 and 4, leads The Nuclear Company’s technical efforts. The company’s services division has performed maintenance at more than 40 percent of America’s current operating nuclear power facilities.

The Nuclear Company plans to begin due diligence immediately and pursue the federal approvals necessary to begin construction in 2028. Initial work will include detailed site characterization, geotechnical investigations, environmental assessments, transmission interconnection planning, and preparation for Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensing.

Planning will address transportation, housing, environmental stewardship, emergency preparedness, water use, and other considerations associated with a nuclear campus of this scale. Trace Creek and The Nuclear Company are committed to working closely with local landowners, community leaders, and residents as the development advances.