TheJobWalk E.96

Read Online | Sign Up | Advertise

A U.S.-Korea framework commits up to $120 billion toward eight new reactors, DOT awards $426 million in INFRA grants across 12 states, and Google and Constellation sign a 3,590 MW deal. ABC credits data centers for September hiring gains and surging construction spending. Saronic breaks ground on its Port Alpha shipyard in Brownsville, Mesabi Metallics announces a $15 billion Iowa steel complex, and Project Star plans 6.47 GW of gas generation in Encinal, Texas. Eagle Rock Partners plans a $6 billion Mississippi data center campus, and Avio USA breaks ground on a Virginia rocket motor plant. Plus, Doka brings its Doka 360 platform to the U.S. Let's dive in!

The United States and South Korea have agreed to a framework that could direct up to $120 billion in Korean capital toward nuclear construction in America. Brookfield Asset Management, a Westinghouse shareholder, welcomed the deal on September 30.

The money would help finance eight large reactors on federal sites chosen by the U.S. government. Six would be Westinghouse AP1000 units across three two-unit plants, and two would be Korean APR1400 designs that also use Westinghouse technology.

Westinghouse would receive an upfront payment and guaranteed work on the APR1400 units, along with a fuel-fabrication contract. Korea would also take a 5% to 10% equity stake in the company.

The framework extends an October 2025 partnership among the Commerce Department, Westinghouse, Brookfield and Cameco covering at least $80 billion in reactors. It is separate from a June 2026 Energy Department arrangement that includes $17.5 billion in conditional loans for long-lead items.

Brookfield ties the effort to rising power demand from AI, electrification and reindustrialization. The terms remain non-binding and subject to final negotiations.

Per diem can be better spent at a Wyndham! Save up to 15% on our Standard Rate and even more for extended stays* as a TheJobWalk subscriber.

With ~6,000 hotels in the U.S., we have a location within about 10 miles of every major infrastructure project. Our properties are built for the way you work - offering early breakfast, flexible stay options, and truck parking at 2,000+ locations in the U.S. and Canada.

Plus, earn points on stays with the award-winning Wyndham Rewards^® loyalty program.

*Offer terms and conditions apply.

Book your discounted rate

📰 DOT Awards $426 Million in INFRA Grants for Highway and Freight Projects in 12 States(DOT)

📰 Google and Constellation Sign 3,590 MW Power Deal(Constellation)

📰 Data Center Boom Fuels Specialty Trade Hiring(ABC)

📰 ArchKey acquires US Communications & Electric(PR Newswire)

📰 Data Center Construction Spending Climbs at 149% Annualized Pace Since March(ABC)

Saronic broke ground September 30 on Port Alpha, a shipyard at Texas' Port of Brownsville backed by more than $3 billion in private capital. The 835-acre yard will build both autonomous and manned ships

At opening, Port Alpha adds 150,000 gross tons of annual capacity, which Saronic says more than doubles current U.S. commercial shipbuilding capacity. The yard will initially build vessels up to 850 feet, and future expansion could support ships over 1,200 feet.

JE Dunn | Alberici Joint Venture will build the initial phase, which includes 1.2 million square feet of enclosed production space across 8 to 10 buildings, plus more than 2,500 feet of deepwater quay.

The first phase already has Navy work lined up. It will produce Landing Craft Utility vessels under a contract Saronic was recently awarded.

Saronic expects up to 10,000 direct jobs over the next decade, from welding to software engineering, and is partnering with the State of Texas, Cameron County and regional educational institutions on training.

OWNER/DEVELOPER: Saronic

CONSTRUCTION TEAM: JE Dunn | Alberici Joint Venture

AWARD: Marine / Manufacturing

INVESTMENT: More than $3 billion

LOCATION: Port of Brownsville, Brownsville, Texas

🔓 Google’s Wyoming Data Center Is Getting a $1.8B Gas Bill
(Read more here)

🔓 $4.8 Billion More Reasons to Watch West Texas
(Read more here)

🔓 Ohio Just Got a $2.2 Billion Pharma Boost
(Read more here)

🔓 LG Is Keeping Their Cool in Virginia
(Read more here)

🔓 Ørsted Starts Construction on 200 MW Blackwater Solar in New Mexico
(Read more here)

We're open to partnerships with companies looking to reach a construction focused audience of owners, contractors, and industry decision makers.

Reach out to learn more about sponsorship opportunities and how we can work together.

Get in touch HERE

🏭 Heavy Metal Heads to Iowa: $15 Billion Steel Complex Planned

President Trump announced September 30 that Mesabi Metallics plans a $15 billion steel complex in Lee County, Iowa, which the White House calls the largest steel plant ever built in the United States. The project is expected to support up to 6,000 construction jobs and create 1,750 permanent positions. According to the company, the mill will pair direct-reduction grade iron ore pellets from Minnesota's Iron Range with DRI-to-EAF steelmaking technology.

KEY DETAILS
Owner / Developer: Mesabi Metallics
Award: Steel Manufacturing
Investment: $15 Billion
Location: Lee County, Iowa

⚡ Project Star Brings Its Own Power to the Data Center Party

The U.S. Commerce Department and South Korea selected Related Companies and NextEra Energy Resources, partnering with Lewis Energy Group, to develop Project Star, a $22.3 billion energy campus in Encinal, Texas. Its 6.47 GW of natural gas generation will support an adjacent 5 GW data center campus and send excess power to the grid. Peak construction should support an estimated 8,400 jobs, with initial generation possible as early as 2029, pending permits.

KEY DETAILS
Developers: Related Companies and NextEra Energy Resources, in partnership with Lewis Energy Group
Build and Operate: Related/NextEra Energy Resources joint venture
Award: Power Generation
Value: $22.3 Billion
Location: Encinal, La Salle County, Texas

🌳 Big Woods, Bigger Budget: $6 Billion Campus Planned in Rural Mississippi

Eagle Rock Partners is planning Big Woods Technology Park, a $6 billion data center campus on roughly 800 acres in Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi. The design-stage project calls for three buildings totaling about 2 million square feet, powered by on-site natural gas generation. Construction could start as early as 2027, run five to seven years and support more than 1,000 jobs. Eagle Rock says it won't seek incentives.

KEY DETAILS
Developer: Eagle Rock Partners
Award: Data Center
Value: $6 Billion
Location: Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi; southeastern portion, off Gum Swamp Road

🚀 It Is Rocket Science: Avio USA Breaks Ground in Southern Virginia

Avio USA broke ground September 29 on its first U.S. manufacturing facility, a roughly 900,000 square foot solid rocket motor plant at the Southern Virginia Multimodal Park in Hurt, Virginia. HITT Contracting is the general contractor, with completion expected by late 2028 and production in early 2029. The plant will be able to produce thousands of motors a year for U.S. tactical missile programs and is expected to create about 1,500 technical jobs.

KEY DETAILS
Owner: Avio USA
General Contractor: HITT Contracting
Award: Manufacturing / Defense
Value: TBD
Location: Southern Virginia Multimodal Park, Hurt, Virginia

Whether you’re a contractor hiring top talent or a construction professional seeking your next opportunity, Lewis Michael Consultants has you covered.

Coast to coast. Field to Executive level.

We Construct Your Talent.

Doka, a global formwork and scaffolding supplier, is bringing its Doka 360 digital platform to U.S. contractors. The system pulls formwork management and day-to-day business with Doka into a single connected environment.

Users can handle planning, orders, material tracking, logistics, returns and invoices in one place. Because the platform runs in a web browser, crews can reach it from the office or the jobsite without downloading an app. The basic version carries no extra charge.

The platform also features AI counting. A user uploads or snaps a photo of materials, and the software groups the items by product type and counts them.

According to Doka USA CEO Michael Kennedy, contractors face more complex sites, tighter schedules and growing volumes of data, so faster information and less administrative work matter.

Access is invite-only for now, starting in several Southeastern states before a phased national expansion. Doka expects to add sensor-based jobsite data and premium services later.

Dubai's Museum of the Future officially opened on February 22, 2022, when Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum inaugurated the 77-meter building, according to the Dubai Media Office.

The structure has no sharp corners on its exterior and was developed using parametric design, a 3D approach that shapes a building from entered data and parameters.

Its stainless steel facade covers 17,600 square meters across 1,024 panels. Robotic arms produced each panel, which has four layers and required a 16-step process.

Crews installed every panel individually, and facade installation took more than 18 months. Arabic calligraphy featuring quotes from Sheikh Mohammed's poetry is lit by 14,000 meters of light lines.

The calligraphy windows use advanced glass designed to improve interior lighting and exterior thermal insulation. The project is organized around three elements: the hill it rises from, the building's exterior and the exhibitions inside.