US to revive shuttered nuclear plants to power data centers and meet electricity demand
The U.S. Department of Energy is providing billions in loans to help restart three shuttered nuclear plants in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Iowa, partly to meet rising electricity demand from data centers. Big Tech contracts with Google and Microsoft are helping support the Duane Arnold and Three Mile Island projects, while experts debate the safety and use of taxpayer funding.
The U.S. Department of Energy is lending up to $4.4 billion to support the attempted restart of the Palisades plant in Michigan, the Crane Clean Energy Center at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania and the Duane Arnold Energy Center in Iowa. Together, the facilities could restore about 2.25 gigawatts of power. The projects are being advanced as the Trump administration promotes nuclear energy to support artificial intelligence, data centers and manufacturing.
NextEra Energy is working with Google to restart Duane Arnold by early 2029, while Microsoft has a 20-year power agreement with Constellation Energy for the Three Mile Island reactor, which is expected to return to service in 2027. Holtec International is pursuing the Palisades restart, but paused fuel-loading work after a fuel assembly shifted. Supporters say restarting existing plants is a relatively fast way to add carbon-free power, while critics including nuclear safety advocate Edwin Lyman and Heritage Foundation director Jack Spencer questioned the safety risks and the use of federal money.