Glossary
nuclear PPA
A long-term contract under which an AI operator commits to buy a defined nuclear-generated power output, becoming the cornerstone financing mechanism for gigawatt-class AI buildouts.
A bilateral contract where a buyer commits to purchase electricity from a named nuclear plant at a fixed price for a fixed term, typically 15 to 25 years. For the seller (the utility or operator) the PPA underwrites refurbishment or new build. For the buyer it locks in carbon-free firm power and front-runs grid scarcity.
The 2024 to 2026 wave was unprecedented: Microsoft and Constellation agreed to restart Three Mile Island Unit 1 (Crane Clean Energy Center), Amazon signed for Susquehanna output, Google contracted Kairos Power for small modular reactors, Meta issued an RFP for up to 4 GW of nuclear. The PPAs are typically structured around behind-the- meter delivery so the data center campus draws directly from the plant rather than through the grid.
The sovereignty implications are sharp. A handful of hyperscalers have effectively reserved most spare US nuclear output for a decade or more. Other AI operators face a much smaller pool of available firm clean power and a longer queue for new interconnection.