Utility giant NextEra Energy is considering restarting the Duane Arnold nuclear power plant in Iowa as some customers have reportedly expressed interest in using the energy for nearby data centers.
CEO John Ketchum told investors during a third-quarter earnings call Wednesday that the company is strongly considering joining the likes of Holtec and Constellation Energy by bringing a retired nuclear plant back online to meet soaring demand.
“We are very busy looking at Duane Arnold,” Ketchum said, per Bloomberg. “We’re very interested in recommissioning the plant.”
The Duane Arnold nuclear plant, just 8 miles northwest of Cedar Rapids, first opened in February 1975. The 600-megawatt plant shut down in 2020 after one of its major customers ended its power purchase agreement. It had been licensed to operate until 2034.
NextEra Energy first indicated interest in bringing the plant back online over the summer, with Ketchum saying in June that he would consider it if the plan could be executed “safely and on budget.”
The chief executive didn’t specify on Wednesday how much it would cost to bring Duane Arnold back online. However, he told investors that as the plant uses fewer complex components than facilities with newer technologies, it may cost less than other projects.
“That gives us optimism about being able to do this at an attractive price,” Ketchum said.
Driving the possible restart of the plant, in part, is customer interest, the company revealed this week. Ketchum told investors there has been a strong interest from customers, particularly data-center customers, in purchasing nuclear power from the facility.
Interest in nuclear energy has seen a revival throughout 2024 amid soaring electricity demand straining the grid. Much of this has been attributed to energy-guzzling data centers, electrification, and large-load manufacturing. As renewable energy sources like solar and wind power have yet to overtake fossil fuels as a dominant power source, several tech companies have been turning their attention to nuclear.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
In September, Microsoft announced plans to enter a purchase agreement with Constellation Energy to restart the Three Mile Island nuclear plant to supply power for its data centers. Earlier this month, Google and Amazon announced separate plans to invest in developing small modular reactors. And outside of the tech industry, Holtec International is in the process of receiving approval to reopen the Palisades Nuclear Plant on Lake Michigan by the end of next year.
“It’s no longer a question of if there’s going to be new nuclear, right?” American Nuclear Society CEO Craig Piercy has told the Washington Examiner. “The question is how much and how fast.”