September 22, 2026 - One of Kentucky’s most prominent coal executives believes the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence and data centers could create thousands of jobs in the Commonwealth while significantly increasing demand for electricity.

Joe Craft, president, CEO and director of Alliance Resource Partners, discussed the potential economic impact of artificial intelligence and data-center development during a recent panel hosted by University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto. Craft was joined by Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg and University of Louisville President Gerry Bradley for a discussion focused on AI and Kentucky’s future workforce.

Craft said Kentucky has an opportunity to develop a workforce capable of constructing and operating the large data centers increasingly being proposed across the state.

“There’s going to be quite a few thousands of jobs that will be needed for residents of the state of Kentucky,” Craft said, adding that data-center developers are having to develop workforces “from scratch” to handle both construction and ongoing operations.

Craft has led Alliance Resource Partners for decades. The Tulsa-based company describes itself as a diversified energy company with significant coal operations and mineral interests and says it is pursuing additional investments related to technology, energy and infrastructure.

Data Centers Could Bring Major New Power Demand

For Kentucky’s energy sector, the growth of data centers could be particularly significant because the facilities require enormous amounts of electricity.

Craft said the state's electricity requirements could ultimately increase by 30% to 40% as data-center development moves forward. He expressed confidence that additional generating capacity could be managed in a way that meets that demand while providing new economic opportunities.

The Alliance CEO has also discussed data-center demand directly in relation to the outlook for coal-fired electricity generation.

During Alliance Resource Partners' July earnings call, Craft said data centers coming online are expected to push electricity demand higher. He said coal plants in the PJM region have available capacity that could be called upon as utilities respond to rising demand, although the eventual division of generation between coal and natural gas will depend on factors including fuel prices and market conditions.

Kentucky is already seeing the scale of investment that could accompany the data-center boom.

In July, the U.S. Department of Energy announced a partnership involving Brookfield, NextEra Energy, Big Rivers Electric Power Corporation, Jackson Purchase Energy Cooperative and Paducah Power System to redevelop portions of DOE's Paducah Site into a data-center campus supported by new energy infrastructure.

DOE said the privately financed investment could exceed $100 billion and is expected to support approximately 8,000 construction jobs and 600 permanent positions. The planned generation and energy-storage infrastructure is also expected to produce more electricity than the data-center campus itself requires, allowing excess power to be supplied to the regional grid.

Questions Remain Over Permanent Jobs

The number of long-term jobs created by data centers remains a point of debate.

Although the projects can require large construction workforces, data centers generally employ considerably fewer workers once construction is complete. Critics of Kentucky's approach have also noted that the state's data-center tax incentives do not require specific levels of job creation, compensation or local hiring.

Kentucky communities considering proposed data centers have raised additional questions about electricity rates, water consumption, transparency and the long-term economic benefits of the projects. Kentucky utilities told state regulators earlier this year that as many as 30 data-center projects were under discussion in the Commonwealth.

Craft, however, sees the development as potentially extending beyond the data centers themselves. He said the availability of data centers and energy infrastructure could help Kentucky attract additional industries.

AI and Defense Could Create Another Opportunity

Craft is also looking toward artificial intelligence and automated defense technology as another possible source of investment and employment.

He said he has worked with U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers and other members of Congress on efforts to attract defense-related technology companies and contracts to Kentucky.

The University of Louisville is already home to a Defense Innovation OnRamp Hub designed to connect companies, researchers and entrepreneurs with national defense innovation programs. Craft credited the university and U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell with helping establish the initiative.

Craft acknowledged that AI could replace some existing work, but argued that technological advances can also make workers more productive and ultimately generate new economic opportunities.

Capilouto similarly described AI as offering both “promise and peril,” saying universities have a responsibility to examine its risks while preparing students and researchers to take advantage of the technology.

For Kentucky, the debate over AI and data centers is increasingly intertwined with a much older industry: energy.

As developers search for locations capable of supplying the enormous amounts of reliable electricity required by AI computing, Kentucky's existing energy infrastructure — including its coal-fired generating fleet — could play an important role in determining how quickly the state's data-center industry develops.

For Craft, that surge in electricity demand represents not only an energy opportunity, but a potential workforce opportunity for a state that has spent decades dealing with employment losses in its traditional coal-producing regions.