Meta inks 20-year nuclear deal to power data center

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Meta inks 20-year nuclear deal to power data center

Meta Platforms has signed a 20-year nuclear energy agreement with Constellation Energy for Meta’s Illinois-based data center, drawing from the Clinton Clean Energy Center.

Hyperscalers including Meta,

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and

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are racing to meet unprecedented enterprise AI demand spurred by the success of OpenAI’s ChatGPT. In 2023,

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that it had used 2.6 million kilowatt-hours of electricity and emitted 1,000 tons of CO2 while developing its Llama large language models.

According to Statista, Meta’s global power consumption soaked up more than 15 terawatt hours in 2023, a 33% increase over the previous year. The company has a goal of using nuclear energy for up to 4 gigawatts of energy consumption in the coming years as a generative AI arms race heats up.

Meta’s deal with Constellation will start in 2027 and explore other nuclear energy opportunities. In December, Meta sent out a

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to meet its growing power needs. On Tuesday, the company said in a

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that it received more than 50 submissions from nuclear energy operators across more than 20 states.

“Through these projects, we aim to activate investment in new nuclear across multiple grids and technologies, seeding new reliable firm power to support future data centers,” according to the blog post. “Our investments in nuclear energy ensure that we will have the robust energy infrastructure needed to power the AI innovations that are set to spark economic growth and prepare our communities for the future.”

The Clinton Clean Energy Center was slated to close in 2017 after years of financial losses. It was able to remain operational after Illinois state government introduced a zero-emissions credit program, which is set to expire in 2027. Constellation said Meta’s deal will ensure long-term operations at the plant without ratepayer support. “[Meta] figured out that supporting the relicensing and expansion of existing plants is just as impactful as finding new sources of energy,” Joe Dominguez, president and CEO at Constellation, said in a

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Meta said such deals are crucial to its future. Meta has already invested more than $1 billion into its DeKalb Data Center in Illinois, which broke ground in 2020.

“Securing clean, reliable energy is necessary to continue advancing our AI ambitions,” Urvi Parekh, Meta’s head of global energy, said in a statement. Details of the Constellation deal were not disclosed.

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has also unveiled

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to meet compute needs. Last year,

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announced a plan to

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nuclear power plant, also owned by Constellation Energy, to meet its growing AI needs, and

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small modular nuclear reactors.

While Meta is making strides on its renewable energy commitment, it cannot seem to shake carbon-emitting energy entirely. The company’s planned

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— a $10 billion project that will be Meta’s largest data center — will construct three natural gas turbines along with renewable energy sources.

What the nuclear deal means for IT leaders

CIOs are under pressure to quickly adopt AI while keeping costs and sustainability in mind. AI demand could have companies — both hyperscalers and enterprises — investing $5.2 trillion into data centers by 2030,

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Meta said its deal with Constellation will allow for 1,121 megawatts of emissions-free energy, reducing its environmental footprint. That could be a win for CIOs who have to show gains both in AI adoption and sustainability efforts.

Bob Johnson, vice president and analyst at Gartner, said the environmental advantages are a plus, but the real advantage is new energy availability during a spike in demand.

“There isn’t enough power to run all the data centers people need for AI,” he said in an interview with Informa TechTarget. “Meta has found a creative way to get enough energy for this data center without having to worry about building a new power plant.”

Johnson said finding alternative energy sources is a matter of meeting demand. “The best way to get power right now is through natural gas,” he said. “Desirability for data centers right now depends on how close you are to a natural gas line.”

He added that data center demand is overwhelming now because of the current state of AI training. In the future, the energy needs might decrease. “The question is: What will AI use end up looking like. Smaller models would imply smaller data centers. We’ll see.”

For now, AI adopters are facing a power crunch.

“We may be unable to keep up with power for the next decade or two,” Johnson said.

Pradeep Sanyal, AI and data leader for IT consultancy Capgemini and a former CIO, said IT leaders should keep a close eye on energy moves by hyperscalers.

“It’s tempting to dismiss Meta’s nuclear deal as overkill for regular CIOs,” Sanyal said in an email interview. “But AI’s energy profile is already reshaping infrastructure economics faster than most expect. Even if you’re not running massive AI clusters, your cloud vendors are. Rising energy demand means high costs, tighter [service-level agreements], and more scrutiny on where your compute power actually comes from.”

He added, “The key is intent. Whether you act now or later, energy strategy is becoming part of IT strategy. Meta’s deal is a signal. The real question is not whether to follow but when it stops being optional.”

Shane Snider, a veteran journalist with more than 20 years of experience, covers IT infrastructure at Informa TechTarget.

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