FRANKFORT, Ky. (Aug. 24, 2026) – Sen. Scott Madon, R-Pineville, and Rep. Adam Bowling, R-Middlesboro, recognized the Lewis Ridge Pumped Storage Project on Monday with a Kentucky General Assembly citation celebrating National Hydropower Day and the project’s potential long-term impact on Bell County and the commonwealth.

The citation, sponsored by Madon and Bowling and signed by Senate President Robert Stivers and House Speaker David Osborne, recognizes Lewis Ridge as “an exciting new venture of tremendous long-term benefit to the Commonwealth and its citizens.”

Planned for former coal mining lands in Bell County, Lewis Ridge is a partnership between Rye Development, a leading U.S. hydropower developer, and Louisville Gas and Electric Company and Kentucky Utilities Company, subsidiaries of PPL Corporation. The project would use two constructed reservoirs at different elevations to store water and generate electricity when additional power is needed. Lewis Ridge is expected to support approximately 2,300 jobs during its four-year construction period and generate an estimated $1.65 million in local tax revenue annually once fully operational.

“For too long, the story of Bell County’s economy has been tied to the ups and downs of coal,” Madon said. “Lewis Ridge gives us an opportunity to put former coal lands back to work generating power while creating jobs, attracting investment and building a stronger economic future for our region. This is the kind of foundational project that can help Eastern Kentucky grow and succeed for generations to come.”

“This is the kind of investment that speaks for itself,” Bowling said. “We have long said Kentucky must be willing to invest in itself if we want to attract good jobs and private capital, and Lewis Ridge puts that principle into action right here in Bell County. It will put people to work, return former coal lands to productive use and add another building block toward making our region the best place to live and work. I was proud to join Senator Madon in recognizing this important project.”

Madon and Bowling serve on their respective chamber’s Natural Resources and Energy Committee.

More information about the Kentucky General Assembly is available at legislature.ky.gov.