An Ancient Nuclear Reactor To Power AI
As a sign of how desperate American tech companies are to power AI data centers, Microsoft will restart a very old reactor. The project will be managed by Constellation Energy, one of the nation’s largest utility companies.
The work to get Three Mile Island back online is massive. It will not reopen until 2028. Constellation claims it will create 3,400 jobs and add $3 billion to the state and federal tax pools.
The only nuclear power plant meltdown in US history was at Three Mile Island on March 28, 1979. Radioactive gases and radioactive iodine leaked outside the facility. The facility was shuttered, but most of it still exists. It completely changed how Americans felt about nuclear energy, which had been presented as an alternative to coal and oil.
People Don’t Want Reactors Close To Them
It is a strong alternative to fossil fuels. “Pennsylvania’s nuclear energy industry plays a critical role in providing safe, reliable, carbon-free electricity that helps reduce emissions and grow Pennsylvania’s economy,” Gov. Josh Shapiro said.
A Pew poll shows that about a third of Americans do not want a nuclear reactor near where they live. It is not how much resistance the project will encounter from residents.
The decision hurts the future of the recently developed modular nuclear reactor business. These new products are much less powerful than traditional installations. But they can be built in different plants and then sent to a location where they are assembled. There has not been an official federal approval of the process.
The level of speed at which AI data companies are seeking new energy is astonishing. So is the restarting of a reactor with Three Mile Island’s history.
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