Commercial

Meta Seeks Nuclear Power Partners

Image: Meta

Over the last year, we’ve watched as Amazon, Google, and Microsoft clued into the value of nuclear. Now, Meta is getting in on the fun.

The Facebook and Instagram parent company announced on Tuesday that it would issue a request for proposals (RFP) from nuclear firms as it prepares to add 1–4 GW of nuclear power to its operations by the early 2030s.

The tech energy mix: Meta and the other hyperscalers have been looking for reliable energy sources to fuel the AI boom and its power-hungry data centers. They’re looking to do that through clean, emissions-free methods (and the clean energy tax credits don’t hurt). 

  • For its part, Meta has contracted 12+ GW of renewables around the globe.

Nuclear power fits the bill when it comes to powering data centers, as it’s carbon-free baseload power with the consistent output tech giants need. But it’s not without challenges.

“Compared to renewable energy projects that we continue to invest in, such as solar and wind, nuclear energy projects are more capital intensive, take longer to develop, are subject to more regulatory requirements, and have a longer expected operational life,” reads a Meta blog post about the RFP. “These differences mean we need to engage nuclear energy projects earlier in their development lifecycle and consider their operational requirements when designing a contract.”

Picking and choosing: Meta is keeping its options open as it puts out the RFP. It ultimately wants to add 1–4 GW of nuclear capacity to power and decarbonize its operations, but it’s interested in whatever technology will make that happen, from next-gen SMRs to traditional light water reactors. The company hasn’t said how many proposals it will ultimately select.

+ posts

Lead Reporter of Ignition

Related Stories
Commercial

The IEA Tallies Energy Investment, and Nuclear Ranks High

Nuclear power is playing in the big leagues when it comes to attracting capital around the world. Each year, the International Energy Agency (IEA), an independent intergovernmental organization formed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), counts up the dollars flowing into energy globally. This year, nuclear energy technologies are expected to pull […]

Commercial

Meta Teams With Constellation to Keep a Plant Running for AI

Why build a whole new nuclear power plant when you’ve got a perfectly good one already running? That’s the motivation behind a deal between data giant Meta and energy utility Constellation. This week, Meta agreed to a 20-year power purchase agreement for the entire output of the Clinton Clean Energy Center in Illinois beginning in […]

Commercial

NuScale Gets the NRC Nod to Go Bigger

Go big or go home. NuScale Power ($SMR) announced last week that it has received NRC standard design approval for its second SMR plan. This reactor has the capacity to produce 77 MW of energy, compared to the 50 MW version of the design that the regulator approved in 2020. “With today’s announcement, NuScale continues […]

Commercial

The NRC Dockets Dow’s Nuclear Construction Permit

Dow is in at the NRC. The chemicals and plastics industrial giant announced in March that it would work with advanced nuclear firm X-energy to transition an industrial plant in Seadrift, TX to nuclear power. Now, the NRC has confirmed that it’s on board. The commission accepted—or docketed—the construction permit application for review this week. […]