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Meta has entered into agreements with three nuclear power companies to buy up to 6.6 gigawatts (GW) of electricity generation to power its data centers and drive artificial intelligence (AI) innovation, Meta said in a Jan. 9 statement.
“Our agreements with Vistra, TerraPower, and Oklo—and the one we signed with Constellation Energy last year—make Meta one of the most significant corporate purchasers of nuclear energy in American history,” the company said.
“These projects are expected to provide thousands of construction jobs and hundreds of long-term operational jobs, supporting up to 6.6 GW of new and existing clean energy by 2035. Importantly, these projects add reliable and firm power to the grid, reinforce America’s nuclear supply chain, and support new and existing jobs to build and operate American power plants.”
The deal with Washington state-based TerraPower will support the development of two Natrium units capable of generating up to a combined 690 megawatts (MW) of electricity. TerraPower’s Natrium plant consists of a reactor and energy storage system, which the company claims is “one of the fastest and lowest-cost paths to advanced, zero-carbon energy.”
The two units are scheduled to start delivery as early as 2032. In addition, Meta has secured rights for six more Natrium units capable of generating 2.1 GW in total, with delivery scheduled for 2035. The agreement also provides for expansion to 1.2 GW of additional storage.
This agreement is “Meta’s largest support of advanced nuclear technologies to date,” the company stated.
The deal with California-based Oklo Inc. will set up a new nuclear technology campus in Pike County, Ohio. The facility is set to add up to 1.2 GW of power directly into the PJM Interconnection, a regional power transmission organization, to support Meta’s operations in the region. This facility could come online as early as 2030.
Meta also signed 20-year agreements with Texas-based Vistra Corp, under which it will buy over 2.1 GW of energy from Vistra’s two currently operating power plants in Ohio. Meta will also buy energy produced from Vistra’s Beaver Valley nuclear plant in Pennsylvania. The three plants will continue to deliver power into the PJM grid region.
Meta announced a 20-year nuclear energy agreement with Constellation Energy in June.
Other big tech companies are also investing in nuclear power to support their data center operations. I 2024, Amazon signed contracts with Washington, Virginia, and Pennsylvania to build small modular reactors. Google has announced similar plans.
Dallas-based Fermi America, cofounded by former Energy Secretary Rick Perry, has revealed plans for an 18-million-square-foot AI data center, scheduled to be operational by 2032.
High Power Usage
There are concerns about data centers using too much power and raising the cost of electricity for everyday Americans.
According to an April report from the International Energy Agency, global electricity consumption by data centers is expected to rise by 15 percent per year, four times the rate of growth for electricity used by all other sectors. China and the United States are estimated to account for around 80 percent of that global increase.
The extra demand for electricity created by data centers can incentivize utilities to raise prices for all customers, including residential users, the report noted. The companies may also have to invest in new infrastructure to meet the additional power demand, contributing to higher costs.
According to a Dec. 18 report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the 12-month inflation rate for electricity was 6.9 percent for November, more than double the 2.7 percent overall year-over-year inflation rate for the month.
The average price of electricity per kilowatt-hour for residential users was 13.15 cents in 2020, but jumped to 17.98 cents in October 2025, an increase of more than 36 percent, according to data from the Energy Information Administration.
In December 2025, a group of lawmakers launched an investigation to determine if big tech data centers were pushing up costs for Americans.
There are also worries about large data centers negatively impacting water supplies. A 2021 report analyzing data center water use found that potable water—not recycled or reclaimed—made up 57 percent of total water used by such facilities.
