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NextEra Energy Inc. plans to restart a nuclear power plant in Iowa, primarily to power Google’s data centers.
The Duane Arnold Energy Center is expected to begin providing power by 2029 following an agreement with Google, according to a statement Monday. The 615-megawatt power plant closed in 2020, long before the AI boom spurred demand for new power sources.
Data centers’ massive power demands are shaking up the energy industry, with tech companies rushing to connect large facilities to the power grid. Hyperscalers value nuclear energy for its ability to provide clean power around the clock.
But building a new reactor takes years. It is hoped that reviving dormant facilities will be a quicker solution, but it appears that only a handful of facilities can be brought back to life.
“The rapid completion of this agreement is further evidence of strong demand for power, especially with baseload and zero-emissions features,” KeyBanc Capital Markets analyst Sophie Karp said in a research note.
Constellation Energy is working to restart one of its nuclear reactors at Three Mile Island, Pennsylvania, by 2027. Holtec International plans to restart its Palisades, Michigan, plant by early next year. Meanwhile, South Carolina utility company Santee Cooper said last week it is in talks with Brookfield Asset Management to complete the partially constructed VC Summer project, which was abandoned in 2017 due to rising costs.
NextEra agreed to sell Google power from Duane Arnold for 25 years. NextEra also acquired the plant’s minority owners, Central Iowa Electric Cooperative and Corn Belt Electric Cooperative, and plans to sell the remaining power from the plant to CIPCO on the same terms that Google receives it.
Google and NextEra also signed an agreement to explore new nuclear power development. NextEra currently has completed approximately 3 gigawatts of energy projects across the United States with Google. NextEra rose as much as 3.5% after the close of regular trading in New York.
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Source: Google to buy power from revived NextEra nuclear power plant (October 28, 2025) Retrieved October 28, 2025 from https://techxplore.com/news/2025-10-google-buy-power-nextera-nuclear.html
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