[Landscape of a factory with nuclear plants. Credit: Pexels]

Three Mile Island, a discontinued nuclear plant in Pennsylvania, will reopen in 2028 under a new name and has secured a 20-year agreement to power Microsoft’s AI database.

The facility has often been associated with the 1979 accident involving a partial meltdown of a nuclear reactor, an event that transformed U.S. nuclear history.

On March 28, 1979, the second nuclear reactor, Unit 2, experienced a suspected mechanical or electrical failure and communication malfunction.

This allowed cooling water to escape the reactor without staff knowledge, resulting in the release of radioactive gases and iodine to its surroundings.

Despite avoiding human casualties, the accident is still recognized as the most severe U.S. nuclear power plant accident, leading to drastically improved reactor safety measures throughout the United States.

After the accident, TMI-2 (Three Mile Island Unit 2) was terminated and underwent a de-fueling cleanup until 1993, costing around USD 1 billion. 

Its sister facility, TMI-1, was discontinued in 2019 due to financial unsustainability by its then owner, Exelon Generation.

“Before it was prematurely shuttered due to poor economics, this plant was among the safest and most reliable nuclear plants on the grid,” said TMI-1’s owner, Constellation CEO Joe Dominguez.

“We look forward to bringing it back with a new name and a renewed mission to serve as an economic engine.”

Constellation Energy claims the restored plant will “add approximately 835 megawatts of carbon-free energy to the grid” and “create 3,400 direct and indirect jobs.”

“Constellation partnering with Microsoft… that tells you that these kinds of plants are going to be needed more and more,” said a representative from Constellation Energy in an interview with CBS, hinting at the increasing demand for clean energy.

The energy deal, sufficient to power 800,000 homes annually, represents a milestone in Microsoft’s efforts toward combating emissions challenges. 

The partnership between Microsoft and Constellation Energy comes as AI usage continues to burn fossil fuels at a rapidly increasing rate.

Allen Institute for AI researcher Jesse Dodge has calculated that one query to ChatGPT consumes approximately the same energy as a light bulb turned on for about 20 minutes, with millions of people accessing the resource daily.

Goldman Sachs reported that a ChatGPT query demands nearly 10 times the electricity of a Google search query, identifying OpenAI (ChatGPT), Google, and Microsoft as companies with unsustainable, soaring energy consumption rates.

However, recognizing their poor contributions to climate change, these companies have taken eco-friendly steps to decrease greenhouse gas emissions.

Microsoft and Constellation’s new Crane Clean Energy Center (previously known as Three Mile Island) represents a symbolic turning point, as nuclear plants are zero-emission clean energy sources.

“Microsoft continues to collaborate with energy providers to develop carbon-free energy sources to help meet the grids’ capacity and reliability needs,” said Microsoft’s Vice President of Energy, Bobby Hollis.

Three Mile Island, now called the Crane Clean Energy Center, will resume operations in 2028 to host Microsoft’s AI database, contribute to Pennsylvania and America’s economy, and help transition AI energy consumption to clean energy usage.