Meta turns to nuclear energy for its AI ambitions

Meta is turning to nuclear energy to power its AI ambitions with the release a request for proposals to partner with nuclear energy developers.

That’s much easier said than done. The first all-new nuclear reactor to be built in the US in decades started running in 2023 — seven years overdue and $17 billion over budget. Developers are now designing next-generation technology called small modular reactors (SMRs) that are supposed to make it easier to build and site a project, ostensibly cutting down costs. Those advanced reactors aren’t expected to become commercially viable until the 2030s.

Meta says it’s interested in both SMRs and larger reactors, and is searching for partners who “who will ultimately permit, design, engineer, finance, construct, and operate these power plants.” Its goal is to add 1-4 gigawatts of new nuclear generation capacity in the US by the early 2030s. For context, 54 nuclear power plants across the nation currently have a combined capacity of roughly 97GW and generate about 19 percent of the US electricity mix.

After decades of aging reactors shutting down, the nuclear landscape is starting to change as companies look for ways to generate electricity without producing the carbon emissions causing climate change. Nuclear power plants have increasingly been seen as a carbon pollution-free source of electricity that can fill in for solar and wind farms when the sun sets and gales weaken.

“We believe nuclear energy will play a pivotal role in the transition to a cleaner, more reliable, and diversified electric grid,” Meta’s announcement says. It’s not alone.

Given the long lead times to construct a new plant — and since advanced technologies will still have to prove that they can work at scale — all these splashy nuclear deals are unlikely to help the US meet its short-term climate goals.