# Marion County, Kentucky: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy Home to Lebanon No data center or power plant project is on record in Marion County, but the national build-out still reaches it through its utility bill, its labor market and the projects next door. Marion County is home to Lebanon and Loretto. 96 MW of new generation is planned here across 1 unit, led by East Kentucky Power Coop, Inc (solar). Next door, Casey County has 217 MW of planned generation. Employers here counted 8,904 jobs in 2025, up 1.9% from 2019. Kentucky Utilities Co is the largest utility serving Marion County, one of 4 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 11.85¢/kWh in 2024, below the 13.21¢ median for Kentucky utilities. 96 MW of new generation planned here, solar leading +1.9% total jobs since 2019, now 8,904 11.85¢ per kWh for Kentucky Utilities Co residential customers, 2024 ## Cities and towns in Marion County Marion County is home to Lebanon and Loretto. Lebanon6,699 residents Loretto714 residents Bradfordsville283 residents Raywick155 residents St. Mary138 residents Residents are 2025 Census estimates for the part of each city, town or township inside this county. Census publishes no annual estimate for unincorporated communities. ## What changed in Marion County | Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Kentucky | |---|---|---|---|---| | Population (2020 → 2025) | 19,587 | 20,115 | ▲ 2.7% | 59th of 120 by size | | Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 8,735 | 8,904 | ▲ 1.9% | 72nd of 120 by growth | | Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $41,616 | $51,637 | ▲ 24.1% | — | | Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 4.6% | 4.7% | ▲ 0.1pts | — | | Planned generation (Aug 2026) | — | 96 MW | no fleet today | 11th of 17 by size | Unemployment was 4.7% in August 2026, against 4.6% in 2019. 20,115 people live here, up 2.7% since 2020. ## Who powers Marion County ### Utilities with service territory in Marion County | Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | Kentucky Utilities Co | Investor Owned | Bundled | 450,673 | 11.85¢ | 32% | | Salt River Electric Coop Corp | Cooperative | Bundled | 53,479 | 10.88¢ | 23% | | Inter County Energy Coop Corp - (KY) | Cooperative | Bundled | 26,655 | 13.74¢ | 10% | | Taylor County Rural E C C | Cooperative | Bundled | 24,985 | 13.27¢ | 24% | Customer counts, prices and sales shares cover each utility's whole system in the state, not only this county. Commercial sales include data centers. No operating power plant is located in Marion County in the EIA-860M inventory. Its power comes over the grid from plants elsewhere. ### Planned generation | Plant | Technology | MW | Status | Year | Owner | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | Cooperative Solar Three-Marion | Solar Photovoltaic | 96 MW | Approvals received | 2027 | East Kentucky Power Coop, Inc | ## The Marion County labor market | Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. | |---|---|---|---| | All industries | 8,904 | $51,637 | 1.00 | Concentration is the BLS location quotient: 1.0 means the industry holds the same share of local jobs as it does nationally. Industry rows count private employers; cells BLS suppresses are left out. ## Data centers and local rules in Marion County No data center, local measure or delayed project is on record in Marion County. Kentucky has 44 local measures on record statewide, and 2 neighboring counties have one: [Boyle County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/boyle-county), [Nelson County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/nelson-county). ## Marion County and its neighbors Of the 6 counties that border Marion County, Casey County carries the most build-out activity: data centers, planned generation and operating plants combined. [[[[[[ | County | Population | Jobs since 2019 | Operating MW | Planned MW | Data centers | Local measures | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | Marion County | 20,115 | ▲ 1.9% | — | 96 MW | — | — | | Boyle County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/boyle-county) | 31,632 | ▲ 2.6% | — | — | — | 1 | | Casey County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/casey-county) | 16,205 | ▲ 1.2% | — | 217 MW | — | — | | Larue County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/larue-county) | 15,184 | ▲ 6.1% | — | — | — | — | | Nelson County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/nelson-county) | 49,036 | ▲ 12.4% | — | — | — | 1 | | Taylor County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/taylor-county) | 26,763 | ▼ 4.2% | 5 MW | — | — | — | | Washington County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/washington-county) | 12,368 | ▲ 6.1% | — | 120 MW | — | — | ## More of Kentucky [All Kentucky countiesThe state power page and county mapOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky)[Nelson County49,036 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/nelson-county)[Boyle County31,632 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/boyle-county)[Taylor County26,763 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/taylor-county)[Casey County16,205 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/casey-county)[Larue County15,184 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/larue-county) ## Marion County, answered from the record ### Who provides electricity in Marion County, Kentucky? 4 utilities have service territory in Marion County in the EIA-861 2024 report: Kentucky Utilities Co, Salt River Electric Coop Corp, Inter County Energy Coop Corp - (KY), Taylor County Rural E C C. The largest, Kentucky Utilities Co, charged residential customers 11.85¢/kWh on average in 2024. ### How much new power is planned in Marion County? 96 MW across 1 units in the August 2026 EIA-860M inventory, 0 MW of it under construction or built. The largest owner is East Kentucky Power Coop, Inc. ### Are there data centers in Marion County? The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Marion County. The nearest activity on record is next door in Casey County. ### Is Marion County adding jobs? Employers counted 8,904 jobs in 2025 against 8,735 in 2019 (+1.9%, BLS QCEW). ### Does Marion County have a data center moratorium? No county-level measure is on record for Marion County. Kentucky has 44 local measures statewide, listed on the state page. --- Canonical: https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/kentucky/marion-county Updated: 2026-10-08. Refreshed weekly by SAVRN from EIA, BLS, BEA, Census and the SAVRN trackers. License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).