Microsoft contract calls for reopening Pennsylvania nuclear power plant where 1979 meltdown occurred to power AI

A new agreement between Microsoft and Constellation Energy Corporation to power the artificial intelligence technology giant’s data centers paves the way for the restart of a nuclear reactor on Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania, where a meltdown occurred in 1979.

Baltimore-based Constellation announced Friday that the 20-year contract it signed with Microsoft will create the Crane Clean Energy Center and restart Three Mile Island’s Unit 1, which operated for decades with industry-leading safety and reliability before being shut down for economic reasons exactly five years ago today.

“Under the agreement, Microsoft will purchase energy from the renovated power plant to help meet its goal of meeting its data center power consumption with carbon-free energy,” Constellation said.

In March 1979, a partial meltdown occurred in reactor block 2 on Three Mile Island in the township of Londonderry, south of Pennsylvania’s capital Harrisburg, resulting in mass evacuations.

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Three Mile Island in March 1999. In the foreground you can see the damaged reactor unit 2. (John S. Zeedick/Getty Images / Getty Images)

“This was the most serious accident in the history of commercial nuclear power plant operations in the United States, although the small releases of radioactive substances had no identifiable effects on the health of workers or the public,” the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said in a statement.

Constellation now hopes to bring the Crane Clean Energy Center in Unit 1 online by 2028 and obtain a license that will allow it to extend plant operations until at least 2054.

“The Unit 1 reactor is located next to TMI Unit 2, which was shut down in 1979 and is currently being decommissioned by its owner, Energy Solutions. TMI Unit 1 is a fully independent facility and its long-term operation was not affected by the Unit 2 accident,” the company says.

“In preparation for restart, significant investments are being made to restore the plant, including the turbine, generator, main transformer, and cooling and control systems. Restarting a nuclear reactor requires approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission following a comprehensive safety and environmental review, as well as approvals from the appropriate state and local authorities,” it said.

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The front entrance of the Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Plant in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, in May 2017. (Reuters/Carlo Allegri / Reuters)

Constellation cited a study commissioned by the Pennsylvania Building & Construction Trades Council. According to the study, the new Crane Clean Energy Center will create 3,400 jobs, feed more than 800 megawatts of carbon-free electricity into the grid and increase Pennsylvania’s GDP by $16 billion.

“This agreement is an important milestone in Microsoft’s efforts to help decarbonize the electric grid, supporting our commitment to become carbon negative,” said Bobby Hollis, vice president of energy at Microsoft, in a statement.

The Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Plant in the early morning hours of March 2011. (Jeff Fusco/Getty Images / Getty Images)

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“Powering industries critical to our nation’s global economic and technological competitiveness, such as data centers, requires an abundance of energy that is carbon-free and reliable 24/7. Nuclear power plants are the only energy sources that can consistently deliver on that promise,” added Joe Dominguez, President and CEO of Constellation. “Before its premature closure due to economic reasons, this plant was among the safest and most reliable nuclear power plants on the grid. We look forward to bringing it back online under a new name and with a renewed mission to serve as an economic engine for Pennsylvania.”