Roane County Executive Wade Creswell’s January 2026 edition of “The Rundown” provides key updates on county activities and major economic developments in the region. A meet-and-greet event hosted by County Building Official Reggie Hucks is scheduled for February 4 at 5:00 pm at the Ag Extension Office, aimed at local contractors to discuss updates to the 2024 International Building Code, with all Commissioners invited.

The county’s FY2027 budget preparation is underway, with department budgets due to Jennifer Hasbrouck by February 13, and committee chairmen urged to schedule meetings between then and March 20 to finalize recommendations by the March 20 deadline.

Significant progress continues in nuclear and energy-related projects, highlighted by the U.S. Department of Energy’s recent announcement of a $900 million award to Orano for low-enriched uranium (LEU) enrichment, marking a major advancement toward constructing their facility in the area; congressional approval for the property transfer is set for January 23, with ownership expected soon after.

The recently passed Energy and Water Budget, chaired by Congressman Fleischmann and anticipated for Senate approval, secures FY2026 DOE appropriations, channeling over $8 billion in federal funding to Oak Ridge contractors.

On specific industrial updates, BWXT has completed and scheduled a ribbon cutting for its new 60,000-square-foot centrifuge components manufacturing facility at the Horizon Center, built in just six months since June, paving the way for future expansions. Triso-X is actively pouring concrete and preparing to erect steel on half of its Horizon Center site, with optimism for an upcoming announcement on the remaining portion. Kairos Power has finished exterior work on its 80-foot Engineering Test Unit 3.0 at the ETTP/Heritage Center site, while continuing foundation work for the Hermes I Demonstration Reactor, targeted to generate grid power via a TVA Power Purchase Agreement by 2027, with Hermes II construction to follow before Hermes I completion. Radiant and Oklo projects remain on schedule for permitting and property transfer processes.

For more details, residents are encouraged to follow the Roane County Facebook page.