Don’t miss the full story, whose reporting from Marc Levy at The Associated Press is the basis of this AI-assisted article.
The U.S. Department of Energy has approved a $1 billion loan to help Constellation Energy restart the Three Mile Island nuclear reactor in Pennsylvania, which will supply power to Microsoft’s data centers under a 20-year agreement.
Some key facts:
• Constellation Energy will use the funds to restart the mothballed 835-megawatt reactor, which can power approximately 800,000 homes.
• Microsoft has signed a 20-year agreement to purchase power from the reactor for its data centers.
• The total cost to restart the reactor is $1.6 billion, with operations expected to resume in 2027.
• The reactor was shut down in 2019 by Constellation Energy’s then-parent company, Exelon, due to financial losses.
• Three Mile Island was the site of the nation’s worst commercial nuclear power accident in 1979, which destroyed one of its two reactors.
• Constellation Energy has renamed the functioning unit the Crane Clean Energy Center and is working to restore equipment, including the turbine, generator and cooling systems.
• The loan is part of a $250 billion energy infrastructure program authorized by Congress in 2022, reflecting growing support for nuclear power to meet rising energy demands from data centers and address climate change.
This article is written with the assistance of generative artificial intelligence based solely on Washington Times original reporting and wire services. For more information, please read our AI policy or contact Ann Wog, Managing Editor for Digital, at awog@washingtontimes.com
The Washington Times AI Ethics Newsroom Committee can be reached at aispotlight@washingtontimes.com.
