Constellation Energy and Microsoft have signed a 20-year power purchase agreement that calls for the reactivation of one of the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant's reactors to exclusively supply energy for the company's enormous data centers, which are essential to the advancement of artificial intelligence.

After Three Mile Island's Unit 1 reactor was shut down in 2019, any revival will need permission from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

The power plant is anticipated to reopen in 2028, assuming approval.

Three Mile Island could have powered more than 800,000 homes with its 837 megawatts of electricity generation capability when it was closed for financial reasons in 2019. When the plant was brought back online, Constellation Energy stated that it anticipated producing more than 800 megawatts of electricity for Microsoft once more.

It also projected that the plant could increase Pennsylvania's GDP by $16 billion and create 3,400 direct and indirect employment.

If the Three Mile Island plant is restored to operational status, it may become the first nuclear power station in the United States to reopen after being shut.

Microsoft plans to utilize this energy for power grid support in the mid-Atlantic states surrounding Washington, DC, an area regarded as a crossroads for the internet.

The enormous energy consumption of data centers puts a great deal of strain on this region, creating questions about grid stability as demand for AI grows.

Tech behemoths such as Microsoft, Amazon, and Google are rapidly growing their data center capacities in order to satisfy the processing and electrical demands of the AI revolution.

To satisfy the electrical needs of AI, several IT companies are placing their bets on nuclear power's quick development.

Further demonstrating the increased interest of IT corporations in nuclear energy, Amazon's AWS decided in March to invest $650 million in a data center campus fueled by another forty-year-old Pennsylvania nuclear reactor.

The Three Mile Island reactor is scheduled to restart in 2028, according to Constellation Energy.