Tag: nuclear power

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.

The Financial Times reports that Meta had also conceived of a nuclear-powered data center and even selected a site for a nuclear power plant, but ultimately abandoned the project due to bee populations. The report states that Meta had reached an agreement with existing nuclear power plant operators to power its AI data center with nuclear power, thereby reducing carbon emissions from the electricity generated. However, Meta CEO Mark Zuckberg later explained in an internal meeting that the discovery of a rare bee species at the original nuclear power plant site forced the project to be terminated. Meta is currently searching for suitable green energy generation methods to power its data center, and if a suitable location can be found again for a nuclear power plant, Meta could still become the first company to power a data center with nuclear power. Prior to this, Google 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 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 artificial intelligence computing over the next 20 years. As for Amazon, after acquiring the nuclear-powered Cumulus data center campus from Tarun Energy for $6.5 million, it recently confirmed plans to build more Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) to generate even more electricity for its data centers and other facilities.