A former aluminum smelter in Hancock County is set to become a large-scale data center. TeraWulf Inc. has acquired the former Century Aluminum facility in Hawesville with more than 250 buildable acres.
Century Aluminum closed the smelter in 2022 due to high energy prices. Mike Baker, director of the Hancock County Industrial Foundation, says discussions were held as recently as a few months ago about re-starting the smelter. When no agreement was reached, discussions turned to repurposing the site.
“An old shut down smelter is somewhat of an eye sore in a community and really doesn’t serve any value," Baker told WKU Public Radio. "We think if we can attract some revenue and create some jobs, that will be better than the alternative.”
The Hawesville site has about 480 megawatts of power previously used by the smelter, with the potential to expand over time. The existing power capacity should relieve any pressure on rates for existing customers, Baker added.
Baker said he’s hopeful the redevelopment will offset some of the roughly 600 jobs lost when the smelter closed. Data centers typically employ fewer than 100 people and often face local opposition over concerns about water consumption, noise pollution, and strain on the energy grid.
Tera Wulf bought the brownfield industrial site as part of a broader expansion into Kentucky and Maryland.
Other data center proposals in the commonwealth have been met with resistance, including projects in Simpson, Oldham, and Meade counties.
The Hawesville site, owned by Century Aluminum, is already zoned for heavy industrial use, and Baker doesn't think opponents could challenge the deal.
"I would think the fact that this is private property owned by a corporation and they choose to sell it, I don't know what vehicles would be available to prevent that."
Century Aluminum has another smelter in Henderson County. The company recently passed over northeast Kentucky and announced plans to build its newest smelter in Oklahoma.
