Holtec International, Constellation Energy and NextEra Energy are advancing plans to restart three closed U.S. nuclear plants, restoring a combined 2.25 GW of generating capacity to the grid. The U.S. Department of Energy is reportedly supporting the projects with up to $4.4 billion in loans.
The projects are Holtec’s Palisades plant in Michigan, Constellation’s Three Mile Island Unit 1 in Pennsylvania, renamed the Crane Clean Energy Center, and NextEra’s Duane Arnold Energy Center.
The restarts aim to meet rapidly growing electricity demand from data centers and artificial intelligence infrastructure. The plans underscore utilities’ focus on nuclear power as a reliable baseload source for the energy needs of technology companies. Microsoft and Google are reportedly supporting the projects through long-term power purchase agreements.