NextEra Energy Gains Approval to Revive Iowa Nuclear Plant for AI Demand
The utility giant received FERC clearance to restart its Duane Arnold facility, targeting a 2028 reopening to power energy-hungry data centers.
NextEra Energy has received a pivotal green light to bring a shuttered Iowa nuclear power plant back to life, a strategic move aimed directly at satisfying the voracious energy demands of the artificial intelligence industry.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has , clearing a path for the company to restart its Duane Arnold nuclear facility. The plant, which was closed in 2020 due to challenging economic conditions, is now targeting a return to service as early as the fourth quarter of 2028.
The revival is driven by surging demand from major technology companies, which require vast and reliable power sources for their increasingly energy-intensive AI data centers. NextEra is looking to secure a long-term power purchase agreement to finance the restart, a model similar to the one used to support the reopening of Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island plant in partnership with Microsoft.
"If we're successful in bringing Duane forward, that obviously creates a hot bed of data center activity around that facility," NextEra CEO John Ketchum stated on a recent earnings call. The company is already in discussions with potential customers for the plant's output.
The recommissioning is a significant undertaking. between $50 million and $100 million in 2025 alone to get the plant operational. The work includes ordering new transformers and rebuilding essential infrastructure like cooling towers and administration buildings that were previously dismantled.
The Duane Arnold plant is one of only three U.S. nuclear reactors considered to be in good enough condition for a potential restart, placing it at the forefront of a broader nuclear energy revival. In addition to the FERC approval, NextEra has also formally asked the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to restore the plant's original operating license, a critical step in the recommissioning process. The allows NextEra to consolidate its interconnection agreements to maintain the plant's historic capacity of 619 MW, originally slated for new solar farms, for the revived nuclear facility.