US is reviving shuttered nuclear plants to meet electricity demand, power data centers
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. NextEra Energy and Google are collaborating on the Duane Arnold restart in Iowa, while Microsoft has contracted for power from Pennsylvania’s Crane Clean Energy Center.
The Biden and Trump administrations have committed billions of dollars in federal financing to restart 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 are expected to restore about 2.25 gigawatts of generation as demand rises from data centers, artificial intelligence and manufacturing.
NextEra Energy CEO John Ketchum said Duane Arnold could restart by early 2029 under a long-term agreement with Google, while Constellation Energy plans to restart the Pennsylvania reactor in 2027 under a 20-year contract with Microsoft. Holtec International is targeting a 2027 restart for Palisades but paused fuel loading after a fuel assembly shifted.
Supporters, including nuclear energy advocates and some state officials, say the projects can quickly restore carbon-free baseload power and preserve nuclear jobs. Critics such as Edwin Lyman of the Union of Concerned Scientists and Jack Spencer of the Heritage Foundation questioned the safety risks and use of taxpayer money, while noting that the plants require substantial upgrades before returning to service.