# Wilkes County, North Carolina: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy Home to North Wilkesboro and Wilkesboro No data center or power plant project is on record in Wilkes County, but the national build-out still reaches it through its utility bill, its labor market and the projects next door. Wilkes County is home to North Wilkesboro and Wilkesboro. Next door, Caldwell County has 4 data centers. Employers here counted 18,897 jobs in 2025, down 10.8% from 2019. Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC is the largest utility serving Wilkes County, one of 4 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 13.94¢/kWh in 2024, above the 13.11¢ median for North Carolina utilities. Unemployment was 3.7% in August 2026, against 3.9% in 2019. -10.8% total jobs since 2019, now 18,897 13.94¢ per kWh for Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC residential customers, 2024 66,233 residents, 2025 ## Cities and towns in Wilkes County Wilkes County is home to North Wilkesboro and Wilkesboro. North Wilkesboro4,369 residents Wilkesboro3,618 residents Ronda447 residents Elkin70 residents · 2% of the city - Elkin also extends into [Surry County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/surry-county). Unincorporated communities (governed by the county): Cricket, Fairplains, Hays, Millers Creek, Moravian Falls, Mulberry, Pleasant Hill. 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 Wilkes County | Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in North Carolina | |---|---|---|---|---| | Population (2020 → 2025) | 65,871 | 66,233 | ▲ 0.5% | 43rd of 100 by size | | Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 21,187 | 18,897 | ▼ 10.8% | 98th of 100 by growth | | Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $38,000 | $51,964 | ▲ 36.7% | — | | Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 3.9% | 3.7% | ▼ 0.2pts | — | 66,233 people live here, up 0.5% since 2020. ## Who powers Wilkes County ### Utilities with service territory in Wilkes County | Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC | Investor Owned | Bundled | 1,919,372 | 13.94¢ | 42% | | EnergyUnited Elec Member Corp | Cooperative | Bundled | 121,995 | 11.54¢ | 23% | | Blue Ridge Elec Member Corp - (NC) | Cooperative | Bundled | 71,926 | 14.59¢ | 24% | | Surry-Yadkin Elec Member Corp | Cooperative | Bundled | 28,080 | 16.06¢ | 6% | 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 Wilkes County in the EIA-860M inventory. Its power comes over the grid from plants elsewhere. ## The Wilkes County labor market | Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. | |---|---|---|---| | All industries | 18,897 | $51,964 | 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 Wilkes County No data center, local measure or delayed project is on record in Wilkes County. North Carolina has 62 local measures on record statewide, and 3 neighboring counties have one: [Surry County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/surry-county), [Watauga County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/watauga-county), [Yadkin County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/yadkin-county). ## Wilkes County and its neighbors Of the 8 counties that border Wilkes County, Caldwell 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 | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | Wilkes County | 66,233 | ▼ 10.8% | — | — | — | — | | Alexander County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/alexander-county) | 36,958 | ▼ 7.3% | 11 MW | — | — | — | | Alleghany County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/alleghany-county) | 11,479 | ▲ 4.7% | — | — | — | — | | Ashe County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/ashe-county) | 27,514 | ▲ 3.5% | — | — | — | — | | Caldwell County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/caldwell-county) | 81,105 | ▲ 0.2% | 40 MW | — | 4 | — | | Iredell County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/iredell-county) | 211,798 | ▲ 7.1% | 43 MW | 10 MW | — | — | | Surry County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/surry-county) | 72,287 | ▼ 0.8% | 92 MW | — | — | 1 | | Watauga County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/watauga-county) | 54,786 | ▲ 1.7% | — | — | — | 1 | | Yadkin County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/yadkin-county) | 38,325 | ▼ 0.7% | 103 MW | — | — | 1 | ## More of North Carolina [All North Carolina countiesThe state power page and county mapOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina)[Iredell County211,798 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/iredell-county)[Caldwell County81,105 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/caldwell-county)[Surry County72,287 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/surry-county)[Watauga County54,786 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/watauga-county)[Yadkin County38,325 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/yadkin-county) ## Wilkes County, answered from the record ### Who provides electricity in Wilkes County, North Carolina? 4 utilities have service territory in Wilkes County in the EIA-861 2024 report: Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC, EnergyUnited Elec Member Corp, Blue Ridge Elec Member Corp - (NC), Surry-Yadkin Elec Member Corp. The largest, Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC, charged residential customers 13.94¢/kWh on average in 2024. ### Are there data centers in Wilkes County? The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Wilkes County. The nearest activity on record is next door in Caldwell County. ### Is Wilkes County adding jobs? Employers counted 18,897 jobs in 2025 against 21,187 in 2019 (-10.8%, BLS QCEW). ### Does Wilkes County have a data center moratorium? No county-level measure is on record for Wilkes County. North Carolina has 62 local measures statewide, listed on the state page. --- Canonical: https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/north-carolina/wilkes-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/).