As the demand for energy to power AI-driven data centers escalates, both Meta and Amazon are facing challenges in their plans to incorporate nuclear power into their operations.
In a recent setback for Meta, the company planned to establish an AI data center near a nuclear facility. However, during site surveys, the discovery of a rare bee species prompted environmental regulators to halt the initiative. Reports indicate that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg ultimately decided to cancel the project after consulting with employees during an all-hands meeting. Despite this deal falling through, Zuckerberg remains committed to addressing energy bottlenecks and the regulatory hurdles impacting their facilities, as noted in a recent podcast interview.
On the other hand, Amazon has encountered a more procedural hurdle. The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) rejected its request for additional power draw from the Susquehanna, Pennsylvania nuclear facility. This power was intended for the adjacent Cumulus data center, which Amazon acquired recently for $650 million. The application sought to increase the power allocation from 300 MW to 480 MW. However, regulators stated that PJM Interconnection, the grid operator, failed to adequately justify this request. FERC had held a technical conference to assess the implications of such expansions on grid reliability, voicing concerns about whether the existing infrastructure could handle the increased demands without leading to reliability issues or higher electricity rates.
Despite these setbacks, reports suggest that Amazon is still committed to advancing its nuclear power project, believing in the long-term potential of such energy sources to meet their operational needs.
