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Meta has agreed to buy the production of Illinois nuclear power plants for 20 years, marking the first deal of this type as it seeks to supplement its electricity to power data centers in the US.
The social media group said Tuesday it has signed a contract with Constellation Energy, the largest traditional nuclear reactor operator in the United States to purchase production volumes at the Clinton Clean Energy Center for 20 years starting in June 2027.
Large tech companies have secured the enormous amount of electricity they need to meet the rising demand caused by the AI boom, urging them to consider power generation options beyond traditional fossil fuels.
The deal comes as Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg is putting billions of dollars into developing AI models and products for the platform to become an “AI leader.”
Meta’s rivals Amazon, Google and Microsoft recently signed contracts with nuclear power plant operators, but plans by social platforms for similar transactions last year have been covered by environmental and regulatory challenges, the Financial Times reported. In it, Zuckerberg told staff that the discovery of a rare bee species in the location next to the plant where a potential data center will be built had complicated the project.
Constellation announced last September that it would reopen its three-mile island nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania after agreeing to a 20-year power contract with Microsoft. One of the factory units was closed in 1979 after a partial meltdown that led to the most serious nuclear accident in US history. In Meta, Clinton is already up and running.
To further boost the outlook for the US nuclear sector, President Donald Trump signed an executive order last month to not only fund the power upgrades to existing reactors, but also to quickly build nuclear reactors, in order to quadruple the country’s nuclear power generation capacity by 2050.
Earlier this year, Constellation announced a nearly $27 billion deal to buy rival Calpine in two of the nation’s biggest generators amid a projected surge in electricity demand spurred by the AI boom.
Financial details for the Clinton transaction have not been revealed. Constellation said in a statement that the agreement with Meta will allow reapply for federal compensation and the continued operation of the factory in the heart of the state, about 250 km southwest of Chicago.
Constellation also said the partnership would expand Clinton’s clean energy production by 30 megawatts, maintaining 1,100 “highly paid local jobs” and generate $13.5 million in annual tax revenues.
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The loss-making Clinton plant was scheduled to close in 2017, but continued through the establishment of the Illinois Legislature, which provided financial support until mid-2027. Meta’s involvement is taken up where government subsidies have expired and allows facilities to operate without the assistance of fee payers.
“The company is “pride” to partner with Meta, as they thought supporting the regeneration and expansion of existing plants was just as influential as finding new energy sources,” said Joe Dominguez, CEO of Constellation.
Constellation’s shares rose about 6% shortly after the opening bell on Wall Street on Tuesday, but Meta rose 0.1%.
Other nuclear stocks were supported by news of Constellation’s partnership. Oklo, a small modular reactor developer backed by Openai CEO Sam Altman, shares rose 9%. Meanwhile, reactor designers’ Nuscale power rose by 8%. Nuclear fuel company Centrus Energy rose 7.5%.
