Amazon Secures 1,920 MW Nuclear Power Deal for AI Data Centers

Amazon has recently secured a significant deal with Talen Energy, a power infrastructure and provider company, to supply 1,920 megawatts (MW) of nuclear energy. This energy will be used to power Amazon Web Services (AWS) and its AI data centers in Pennsylvania until the year 2042. The energy will be produced at Talen's Susquehanna nuclear facility and will be supplied through the grid, rather than directly from the nuclear plant. This arrangement will help support the energy grid's maintenance through service fees paid by Amazon.

Under the agreement, PPL Electric Utilities, an energy transmission company, will be responsible for delivering the power to Amazon. Christine Martin, president of PPL Electric Utilities, highlighted the benefits of connecting large load customers like data centers to their transmission system, stating that it helps lower the transmission component of energy bills for all customers, as large load customers pay significant transmission charges on the network.

This move by Amazon reflects the growing need for high-energy output infrastructure to power artificial intelligence and high-performance computing data centers. As AI development becomes a key priority for global leaders, tech giants are increasingly turning to nuclear power to meet their energy demands. In September 2024, Microsoft signed a deal with Constellation Energy Corporation to re-open the Three-Mile Island nuclear site and provide power to its AI data centers. More recently, Meta agreed to purchase 1.1 gigawatts of nuclear power from Constellation over 20 years to power AI facilities.

The shift toward nuclear energy generation has received support from several political leaders, who urge innovation on the AI front to avoid falling behind international competitors. The United States President has repeatedly voiced calls to dedicate more resources to nuclear power production to meet the demands of AI, cryptocurrency mining, and other high-performance computing applications.

Amazon's investment in Pennsylvania is substantial, with plans to spend $20 billion on constructing data facilities in the region. This investment is expected to bring 1,250 high-skilled jobs and economic benefits to Pennsylvania, while also supporting the state’s AI innovation efforts. The agreement is part of a broader trend among leading cloud and AI companies to secure nuclear energy for their data centers, underscoring the growing reliance on nuclear energy to meet the energy needs of AI and cloud infrastructure.