Tennessee Governor Bill Lee Announces BWXT Expansion, $714.5 Million Investment in Washington County for National Security
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee, Deputy Governor and Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Stuart C. McWhorter, and BWXT officials have announced an agreement supporting the expansion of BWXT’s facility in Washington County. This expansion involves a $714.5 million investment in Jonesborough, Tennessee, to produce High Purity Depleted Uranium (HPDU) metal for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). The project is expected to create 181 new jobs, more than doubling BWXT's current local workforce. This initiative is supported by an economic development grant from the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD). In September 2025, NNSA awarded BWXT a 10-year contract valued at $1.6 billion to build an HPDU manufacturing plant at its Jonesborough site, which, once completed, will be the sole active site for this critical process for the government.
