# Knox County, Tennessee: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy Home to Knoxville and Farragut The data center boom is not abstract in Knox County: it is on the ground here. The SAVRN Data Center Map lists 4 data centers in Knox County, 5% of Tennessee's total. Knox County is home to Knoxville and Farragut. The Moratorium Tracker holds 1 local measure here (1 in force); the latest is “One-year data center moratorium (through June 30, 2027)”. Construction employs 14,802, up 21.5% since 2019. Employers here counted 262,703 jobs in 2025, up 9.2% from 2019. 4 data centers on the SAVRN Data Center Map, 5% of Tennessee's +9.2% total jobs since 2019, now 262,703 -6.8% electrical contractor jobs since 2019, now 2,099 ## Cities and towns in Knox County Knox County is home to Knoxville and Farragut. Knoxville202,021 residents Farragut25,121 residents Unincorporated communities (governed by the county): Halls, John Sevier, Karns, Mascot, Powell. 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 Knox County | Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Tennessee | |---|---|---|---|---| | Population (2020 → 2025) | 480,472 | 511,453 | ▲ 6.4% | 3rd of 95 by size | | Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 240,575 | 262,703 | ▲ 9.2% | 28th of 95 by growth | | Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $49,861 | $67,249 | ▲ 34.9% | — | | Construction jobs (2019 → 2025) | 12,180 | 14,802 | ▲ 21.5% | 32nd of 55 by growth | | Electrical contractor jobs (2019 → 2025) | 2,251 | 2,099 | ▼ 6.8% | — | | Power line construction jobs (2019 → 2025) | 256 | 361 | ▲ 41.0% | — | | Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 2.9% | 3.2% | ▲ 0.3pts | — | | Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 0 MW | | — | | Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 0 MW | | — | Its power plants have 5 MW of capacity, 100% of it natural gas. Knoxville Utilities Board is the largest utility serving Knox County, one of 3 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 12.54¢/kWh in 2024, above the 12.22¢ median for Tennessee utilities. Electrical contractors employ 2,099, down 6.8% since 2019 against up 20.9% statewide, at an average $74,175 a year. 511,453 people live here, up 6.4% since 2020, 3rd of 95 Tennessee counties by population. Unemployment was 3.2% in August 2026, against 2.9% in 2019. ## Who powers Knox County ### Utilities with service territory in Knox County | Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | Knoxville Utilities Board | Municipal | Bundled | 193,707 | 12.54¢ | 40% | | City of Lenoir - (TN) | Municipal | Bundled | 62,455 | 11.95¢ | 40% | | City of Clinton - (TN) | Municipal | Bundled | 26,230 | 12.99¢ | 23% | Customer counts, prices and sales shares cover each utility's whole system in the state, not only this county. Commercial sales include data centers. ### Operating power plants | Technology | Capacity | Share | |---|---|---| | Natural gas | 5 MW | 100% | | Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since | |---|---|---|---|---| | University of Tennessee Steam Plant | University of Tennessee | Natural gas | 5 MW | 1996 | ## The Knox County labor market | Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. | |---|---|---|---| | All industries | 262,703 | $67,249 | 1.00 | | Construction | 14,802 | $82,934 | 1.06 | | Electrical contractors | 2,099 | $74,175 | 1.11 | | Power and communication line construction | 361 | $88,390 | 0.85 | 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 Knox County 4 data centers in Knox County are on the SAVRN Data Center Map. ### Local measures | Measure | Status | Date | |---|---|---| | One-year data center moratorium (through June 30, 2027) | In force | 2026-07 | ## Knox County and its neighbors Of the 8 counties that border Knox County, Roane 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 | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | Knox County | 511,453 | ▲ 9.2% | 5 MW | — | 4 | 1 | | Anderson County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/anderson-county) | 82,066 | ▲ 17.0% | 136 MW | — | — | 2 | | Blount County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/blount-county) | 143,820 | ▲ 11.3% | 217 MW | — | — | — | | Grainger County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/grainger-county) | 25,739 | ▲ 7.2% | — | — | — | — | | Jefferson County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/jefferson-county) | 60,024 | ▲ 3.9% | 137 MW | — | — | — | | Loudon County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/loudon-county) | 63,764 | ▲ 11.0% | 287 MW | — | 1 | 1 | | Roane County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/roane-county) | 57,395 | ▲ 4.0% | 1,700 MW | 1,831 MW | 2 | 1 | | Sevier County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/sevier-county) | 101,342 | ▲ 8.3% | 151 MW | — | — | — | | Union County](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/union-county) | 21,450 | ▲ 9.1% | — | — | — | — | ## More of Tennessee [All Tennessee countiesThe state power page and county mapOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee)[Blount County143,820 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/blount-county)[Sevier County101,342 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/sevier-county)[Anderson County82,066 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/anderson-county)[Loudon County63,764 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/loudon-county)[Jefferson County60,024 peopleOpen →](https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/jefferson-county) ## Knox County, answered from the record ### Who provides electricity in Knox County, Tennessee? 3 utilities have service territory in Knox County in the EIA-861 2024 report: Knoxville Utilities Board, City of Lenoir - (TN), City of Clinton - (TN). The largest, Knoxville Utilities Board, charged residential customers 12.54¢/kWh on average in 2024. ### What county is Knoxville, TN in? Knoxville is in Knox County, Tennessee. About 202,021 people live there (2025 Census estimate). ### What county is Farragut, TN in? Farragut is in Knox County, Tennessee. About 25,121 people live there (2025 Census estimate). ### What power plants are in Knox County? 1 operating plant with 5 MW of capacity. The largest is University of Tennessee Steam Plant (5 MW, natural gas). ### Are there data centers in Knox County? Yes. The SAVRN Data Center Map lists 4 data centers in Knox County. ### Is Knox County adding jobs? Employers counted 262,703 jobs in 2025 against 240,575 in 2019 (+9.2%, BLS QCEW). Construction went from 12,180 to 14,802. ### Does Knox County have a data center moratorium? The SAVRN Moratorium Tracker holds 1 local measure for Knox County, 1 in force. --- Canonical: https://savrn.com/power-supply-chain-map/tennessee/knox-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/).