Duke Energy has selected three sites in Southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky for its 2025 Site Readiness Program, aiming to boost economic development by preparing these properties for business and industrial use. The chosen sites are Frick Family Farms in Monroe, Ohio (Butler County), Union Ren Farms in Middletown, Ohio (Warren County), and Commonwealth Commerce Center in Northern Kentucky (Pendleton County).
Since the program began in 2010, Duke Energy’s Site Readiness Program has evaluated 42 locations across Ohio and Kentucky. This initiative has resulted in commitments from 20 companies, leading to more than $2 billion in capital investments and the creation of 5,400 jobs within the two states. Companies such as Coca-Cola, Carvana, Shape Corp., and Niagara Bottling have expanded operations on sites previously included in the program.
The program is designed to help communities make their properties more competitive for investment by collaborating with consulting firm Site Selection Group and local engineering company Bayer Becker. Duke Energy also works closely with REDI Cincinnati, BE NKY Growth Partnership, local governments, and other utilities.
“Economic development is vital to the future growth and prosperity of our region. Our Site Readiness Program is one example of the proactive economic development initiatives that Duke Energy pursues to help spark investment in the communities we serve. We appreciate our collaboration with local partners and developers as we work to bring more jobs to the region and make Greater Cincinnati a place in which people want to work and live,” said Amy Spiller, president of Duke Energy Ohio and Kentucky.
Kimm Lauterbach, president and CEO of REDI Cincinnati stated: “Duke Energy’s Site Readiness Program not only speeds up economic development opportunities but also ensures that our communities are equipped to compete with sites that are ready to be utilized. We appreciate Duke Energy’s ongoing investment and leadership in enhancing the economy of the Cincinnati region.”
Duke Energy’s efforts have been recognized for 21 consecutive years by Site Selection magazine as one of its “Top Utilities in Economic Development.” In 2024 alone, the company helped attract $548 million in new capital investment along with over 1,000 jobs across Ohio and Kentucky.
Duke Energy Ohio/Kentucky serves electric customers across a 3,000-square-mile area—totaling about 910,000 residential, commercial, and industrial accounts—and provides natural gas service to approximately 560,000 customers within a separate service area spanning 2,650 square miles.
The parent company Duke Energy is based in Charlotte, North Carolina. It ranks among America’s largest energy holding companies with electric utilities serving around 8.6 million customers across several states including North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky; collectively it owns an energy capacity of about 55 gigawatts. Its natural gas utilities serve roughly 1.7 million customers across four states.
More details can be found at duke-energy.com or through their social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, Instagram or Facebook.
