U.S. Government Provides $1.9 Billion Loan to Revive Iowa Nuclear Power Plant for Google Data Centers
The U.S. Department of Energy has approved a $1.9 billion loan to NextEra Energy, the owner of the Duane Arnold Energy Center in Iowa, to refurbish and restart the mothballed nuclear power plant by 2029. This follows a similar $1 billion loan granted last year for restarting Three Mile Island’s reactor. The Trump administration is positioning revived nuclear plants as critical infrastructure to meet rising electricity demand driven by AI data centers operated by tech giants like Google, Microsoft, and Meta. Google plans to build up to six new data centers near the Iowa plant, which will require significant power. NextEra expects to increase output from 501 megawatts to 615 megawatts after refurbishment. The broader trend reflects a surge in demand for clean energy due to AI expansion and economic electrification, prompting tech companies to invest heavily in reviving shuttered nuclear facilities as reliable sources of power. Microsoft has already partnered with Constellation Energy on the Three Mile Island project set to restart in 2028. Meta is securing renewable credits from Illinois’s Clinton Clean Energy Center while using local grid electricity for its Hyperion AI data center, which will consume vast amounts of energy.
Topics: AI data centers energy policy government funding nuclear power