Microsoft wants Three Mile Island to fuel its AI power needs

Microsoft just signed a woody to revive the shuttered Three Mile Island atomic powerfulness plant. If approved by regulators, the bundle shaper would person exclusive rights to 100 percent of the output successful bid powerfulness its AI information centers.

Constellation, the proprietor of the Three Mile Island plant, announced a power acquisition agreement with Microsoft earlier today, which should spot the tract coming backmost online successful 2028, assuming regulators o.k. it.

The reactor that Microsoft plans to root its vigor from was retired successful 2019 for economical reasons, and is located adjacent to a portion that was shutdown successful 1979 aft the worst US atomic mishap successful history. The works that Constellation plans to reopen tin make 837 megawatts of energy, capable to powerfulness much than 800,000 homes — demonstrating the immense magnitude of powerfulness needed for information centers and Microsoft’s AI ambitions.

Microsoft has agreed to acquisition powerfulness from the works — which volition beryllium renamed to the Crane Clean Energy Center to grant the precocious Chris Crane, erstwhile CEO of Exelon — for 20 years successful a archetypal of its benignant woody for the bundle giant.

Microsoft’s own greenhouse state emissions are growing with its absorption connected AI, putting its ambitious clime goals astatine risk. Bloomberg reports that this atomic works would assistance Microsoft’s plans to tally its information centers connected cleanable vigor by 2025, and powerfulness information halfway expansions successful Chicago, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Ohio.

“This statement is simply a large milestone successful Microsoft’s efforts to assistance decarbonize the grid successful enactment of our committedness to go c negative,” says Bobby Hollis, vice president of vigor astatine Microsoft. “Microsoft continues to collaborate with vigor providers to make carbon-free vigor sources to assistance conscionable the grids’ capableness and reliability needs.”

Microsoft has been betting connected next-generation atomic reactors to powerfulness its information halfway and AI plans recently, looking for idiosyncratic who could rotation retired a program for tiny modular reactors (SMR) past year. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is also a “big believer that atomic vigor tin assistance america lick the clime problem.”

Constellation will put $1.6 cardinal to revive the plant, and the institution volition request support from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to bring the tract backmost online, alongside permits from authorities and section agencies. Constellation is besides pursuing a licence renewal to widen works operations until astatine slightest 2054.