Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro has called on regulators to accelerate the integration of the Three Mile Island nuclear reactor into the power grid. This move would allow Microsoft Corporation MSFT to tap into its power by 2028.
What Happened: Following Microsoft’s decision to buy power from the currently dormant Three Mile Island nuclear plant, Shapiro wrote a letter to regulators Friday, advocating for the reactor to bypass the growing queue for grid connection.
In a letter addressed to the heads of PJM Interconnection, the grid operator serving Pennsylvania and several other states, Shapiro said that the reactor should be allowed to come online quickly, rather than being treated as a new development.
He said PJM halted the acceptance of new energy source applications in 2021 and will not resume accepting them until February 2026.
“Even when the queue reopens, it will be several more years before the energy can actually from those projects and into our communities,” he stated in the letter.
In response, PJM said it is working on a “fast track” system to prioritize certain electricity projects, reported Barron’s. The grid, facing significant new electricity demands due to data centers, electric vehicles, and new factories, could reach its limit of reliable power by 2030.
Why It Matters: The Three Mile Island reactor (Unit 1), owned by Constellation Energy Corporation CEG, was shut down in 2019 for financial reasons.
Unit 1 is located adjacent to TMI Unit 2, which has been inactive since 1979 and is currently being decommissioned by Energy Solutions. The unit suffered a partial meltdown on March 28 of that year. It was the most serious accident in the U.S. commercial nuclear operating history, according to the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Unit 1 operates independently and was not impacted by the accident.
Former Pennsylvania governor Dick Thornburgh later said that about 140,000 people evacuated the area surrounding the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant within days of the accident.
Now, with the 20-year power purchase agreement with Constellation Energy, Microsoft plans to source energy from the revived plant to align its PJM data centers' power use with carbon-free energy, supporting its sustainability goals.
Following the announcement of the deal, Constellation Energy’s shares saw a significant increase, and several analysts raised the price target on the stock.
Image via Shutterstock
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