Tag: Nuclear power generation

Following its earlier solicitation of proposals to recruit suitable nuclear energy developers for a project to generate 1-4 million kilowatts of electricity from nuclear power in the United States, Meta recently announced a 20-year partnership agreement with Constellation Energy, a Baltimore-based energy company. The agreement stipulates that Meta will purchase nuclear power from Constellation Energy's Clinton Clean Energy Center in southern Illinois. Starting in June 2027, Meta will acquire approximately 1.1 million kilowatts (GW) of electricity from Constellation Energy's Clinton Clean Energy Center, almost equivalent to the entire generating capacity of one of its nuclear reactors. Meta has also committed to further expanding the power grid, but did not disclose the transaction amount. This agreement will support the continued operation of Constellation Energy's clean energy center, ensure its re-establishment of operating permits, and preserve over 1000 local jobs. Without Meta's collaboration, the clean energy center would face closure after its zero-carbon emission credits, which it had relied on since 2017, expire. Besides Meta, Google previously announced a partnership with nuclear energy startup Kairos Power, planning to generate 500 megawatts of electricity using nuclear power by the end of this century to power its power-intensive data centers. Microsoft recently announced a partnership with Constellation Power, planning to reactivate Constellation Power's Three Mile Island nuclear power plant by 2028, thereby providing Microsoft with the electricity needed for artificial intelligence computing over the next 20 years. While this latest collaboration with Constellation Power doesn't involve building a new nuclear power plant, it signifies Meta's formal entry into the nuclear power application field, with the aim of generating 1-4 million kilowatts of electricity in the United States through nuclear power.

Previous reports indicated that Meta abandoned its initial selection of a nuclear power plant site due to the presence of bees. However, it has recently released a new Request for Proposal (RFP) to select a suitable nuclear energy developer to power its AI data centers with nuclear power, thereby reducing carbon emissions from the electricity generated by these data centers. Meta aims to generate 1-4 MW of electricity from nuclear power within the United States and is seeking suitable nuclear energy developers through the RFP. If a suitable partner is found, Meta expects to be operational as early as the beginning of 2030, meeting the large power demands of the data centers and supporting the power needs of surrounding areas. In previous reports, Google announced a partnership with nuclear energy startup Kairos Power to generate 500 megawatts of electricity using nuclear power by the end of this century, powering its power-intensive data centers. Microsoft also recently announced a partnership with Constellation Energy to reactivate Constellation Energy's Three Mile Island nuclear power plant by 2028, providing Microsoft with the electricity needed for AI computing over the next 20 years. Amazon, after acquiring the nuclear-powered Cumulus data center campus from Tarun Energy for $6.5 million, has recently confirmed plans to build more Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) to generate more electricity for its data centers and other facilities. Meta had previously reached an agreement with an existing nuclear power plant operator, but the project was terminated due to the discovery of a rare bee species at the original nuclear power facility site.

Google recently announced a partnership with nuclear energy startup Kairos Power to build seven small modular reactors (SMRs) in the United States, aiming to generate 500 megawatts of electricity by the end of this century to power its power-intensive data centers. Following this announcement, the company has received approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for its plans and construction permits. With this approval, Kairos Power has begun construction on two pilot reactors in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, with full operation expected in 2027. Kairos Power spokesperson Ashley Lewis revealed that the SMRs will use uranium coated with carbon and a ceramic shell as fuel, which will contain fission waste in the event of a nuclear accident. Fluoride molten salt will also be used for cooling to maintain reactor stability. Each reactor will generate 35 megawatts of thermal energy, which will be converted into 20 megawatts of electricity via turbines. Kairos Power's commercial-scale power generation facility will feature two reactors, increasing the total power generation to 150 megawatts. The company plans to begin supplying electricity to Google starting in 2030, with plans to complete the construction of other reactors by 2035. Kairos Power previously received a $3.03 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to improve its molten salt cooling system to ensure reactor safety, ensuring its reactor design meets safety requirements. It successfully passed the safety review by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in July of this year and the environmental assessment in August, and has now obtained construction permits. In addition to Google's plan to power its data centers with nuclear power, Microsoft recently announced a partnership with Constellation Energy to reactivate Constellation Energy's Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in 2028, thereby providing Microsoft with the electricity needed for artificial intelligence computing over the next 20 years. Amazon has also acquired the nuclear-powered Cumulus data center campus from Talen Energy for $650 million.

Constellation Energy plans to reactivate its Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in 2028 and has signed a 20-year partnership agreement with Microsoft to provide the massive amounts of electricity needed for artificial intelligence computing. Three Mile Island suffered a meltdown in 1979 due to equipment failure and human error, causing a nuclear meltdown in one of its reactors. While no nuclear contamination occurred at the time, it raised concerns among local residents about potential future accidents. Furthermore, with only one reactor remaining operational, the plant faced difficulties competing with natural gas and thermal power generation due to the high cost of nuclear power, leading to its closure in 2019 after years of losses. This new 20-year agreement with Microsoft represents a reverse of Constellation Energy's original plan to completely decommission the Three Mile Island plant and to reactivate it in 2028, with all electricity generated to be used for Microsoft's artificial intelligence services. However, this plan still requires approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. If approved, Three Mile Island will become the second nuclear power plant in U.S. history to restart operations, following Palisades, Michigan, which aims to resume operations by the end of 2025. The surge in demand for artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in recent years, with even greater growth expected in the coming years, is likely to significantly increase electricity demand. This has prompted many AI technology companies and cloud platform service providers to explore ways to acquire more electricity resources while maintaining zero-carbon emission goals, potentially posing greater challenges to the future development of AI technologies.