Energy Department Issues $1 Billion Loan to Reboot Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant

Constellation said the upgraded facility, dubbed the Crane Clean Energy Center, will power the equivalent of 800,000 homes by 2027.

The Three Mile Island nuclear power plant owned by Constellation Energy near Middletown, Penn., on Oct. 10, 2024. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

The Department of Energy (DOE) said on Nov. 18 that it had issued a $1 billion loan to Constellation Energy Generation LLC to restart a nuclear generating station in Pennsylvania formerly known as Three Mile Island.

The DOE said in a notice that the $1 billion loan would help to “lower energy costs” by restarting the plant located on the Susquehanna River in Londonderry Township.

“Constellation’s restart of a nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania will provide affordable, reliable, and secure energy to Americans across the Mid-Atlantic region,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a statement. “It will also help ensure America has the energy it needs to grow its domestic manufacturing base and win the [artificial intelligence] race.”

The loan will help partially finance the plant’s reboot after five years out of service. It is expected to bring online 835 megawatts of baseload power, which will power the equivalent of about 800,000 homes, according to the DOE.

Three Mile Island is known as the site of the United States’ most serious commercial nuclear accident; one of the two nuclear units of the plant, Unit 2, suffered a partial meltdown in 1979.

After the 1979 incident, Unit 1 was restarted in 1985. It was licensed to operate until 2034.

It continued to operate safely through 2019 until the previous owners, Exelon, decided to shut down the plant because of insufficient funding to maintain operations.

In 2024, Constellation entered a 20-year power purchase agreement with Microsoft to reopen the plant and power its artificial intelligence (AI) data centers with a zero-carbon source.

On Nov. 18, Constellation confirmed the loan approval, saying it was made possible by its “strong balance sheet and credit worthiness.” The company has renamed the facility the Crane Clean Energy Center.

Constellation CEO Joe Dominguez praised the Trump administration’s “quick action and leadership” in backing the addition of more nuclear power.

The Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant in Middletown, Penn., on March 28, 2011. Jeff Fusco/Getty Images

“Under the Trump administration, the FERC and DOE have made it possible for us to vastly expedite this restart without compromising quality or safety,” he said. “It’s a great example of how America first energy policies create jobs, growth and opportunities and make the grid more reliable.’

Dominguez said that utilities and grid operators have been “moving too slowly and need to make regulatory changes that will allow [the United States] to unlock its abundant energy potential.”

Sen. Dave McCormick (R-Pa.) said the federal government’s backing of Constellation to restart the Crane Clean Energy Center will create 3,400 new direct and indirect jobs and allow Pennsylvania to lead the United States’ energy independence and the AI revolution. It currently employs more than 500 staff at 80 percent capacity.

The nuclear project is the first to receive both approval and financing from the Trump administration. It aligns with President Donald Trump’s Executive Order “Reinvigorating the Nuclear Industrial Base.” It will still require licensing approvals from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission before it can come back online.

“The Crane Restart project will help lower electricity costs, strengthen grid reliability, create over 600 American jobs, and advance the Administration’s mission to lead in global AI innovation and restore domestic manufacturing industries,” the DOE said.