Google strikes major nuclear power deal to fuel AI data centers with 50 megawatt capacity

Google, Kairos Power and the Tennessee Valley Authority have agreed to supply 50 megawatts of nuclear power to data centers in Tennessee and Alabama.The companies say the deal will help meet rising U.S. energy demand and advance the nation’s role in next-generation nuclear power.Under the agreement, Kairos’s Hermes 2 Plant in Oak Ridge will feed up to 50 megawatts into the TVA grid that serves Google’s facilities.The deal makes TVA the first utility to purchase power from a GEN IV reactor. It also marks the first deployment of Hermes 2 under Kairos’ broader pact with Google to deliver 500 megawatts by 2035. Kairos plans to boost Hermes 2’s output from 28 to 50 megawatts beginning in 2030.AI ENERGY DEMAND IN US WILL SURGE BUT ALSO PROVIDE OPPORTUNITY TO MANAGE ENERGYIn October, Google signed a deal with Kairos to buy nuclear power from ‘multiple’ small modular reactors under development.The reactors "will be sited in relevant service territories to supply clean energy to Google data centers" beginning in 203, Kairos Power said at the time.Google said this week the reactor will supply electricity to its data centers in Montgomery County, Tennessee, and Jackson County, Alabama.MICROSOFT DEAL WOULD REOPEN PENNSYLVANIA NUCLEAR PLANT, SITE OF 1979 PARTIAL MELTDOWN, TO POWER AI"With this next step, we are creating a three-party solution where energy customers, utilities, and technology developers work together to advance new technologies that can help meet the world’s growing energy needs with reliable, affordable capacity," Google said."In this initial phase of the collaboration, we will procure clean energy attributes from the plant through TVA to help power our data centers in the region with locally sourced clean energy, every hour of every day," the company added.Big Tech’s energy-hungry data centers, fueled by generative artificial intelligence, require massive amounts of electricity.STATES LOOK TO SMALLER ADVANCED NUCLEAR REACTORS FOR POWER NEEDSThose record energy needs have pushed U.S. power consumption to new highs and fueled demand for next-generation nuclear.The Google-Kairos deal will ultimately support 500 megawatts of advanced nuclear capacity—enough to power about 350,000 homes.Google isn’t alone in turning to nuclear.Microsoft struck a 20-year power purchase agreement with Constellation last year that could restart Three Mile Island’s Unit 1 reactor in Pennsylvania. Amazon announced three nuclear-focused deals in October with Energy Northwest, X-energy and Dominion Energy.A GridStrategies report projects U.S. electricity demand will rise 15.8% by 2029, driven by data centers, manufacturing and electrification.The International Energy Agency expects U.S. data center electricity use to jump 130% between 2024 and 2030.FOX Business’ Aislinn Murphy and Reuters contributed to this report.Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei FOX Business Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei FOX Business