Tech company Google has agreed to fund development for three new nuclear power sites in the United States, partnering with nuclear developer Elementl Power to help meet rising energy demand, particularly from its data centers. The agreement announced Wednesday involves Google providing early-stage development capital for the projects.
Each proposed nuclear power site is expected to generate at least 600 megawatts of power capacity. While terms remain private, Elementl Power said Google's funding will support site permitting, securing interconnection rights to the transmission system, and other initial steps. Elementl Power aims to add 10 gigawatts of nuclear capacity to the grid by 2035.
Amanda Peterson Corio, Google's global head of data center energy, stated the company is committed to projects that strengthen power grids where they operate, citing that advanced nuclear technology provides reliable, baseload, 24/7 energy. She added that the collaboration enhances Google's ability to move quickly to meet the demands of AI and American innovation.
Elementl Power was founded in 2022 as a nuclear power project developer and has not yet built any sites. The company is technology agnostic, planning to choose reactor technology furthest along in development when ready to begin construction.
Chris Colbert, Elementl Power's chairman and CEO, said such partnerships help mobilize the capital required for new nuclear projects, which Elementl considers important for delivering safe, affordable, and clean baseload power and helping companies meet net zero goals. He noted Elementl will raise capital from other sources for construction once projects reach a final investment stage. Colbert was formerly CFO, COO, and chief strategy officer at NuScale Power, which develops small modular reactors.
Ryan Mills, Elementl Power Co-Founder and President, commented that he and his partners launched Elementl Power to serve as a catalyst for private capital formation in advanced nuclear projects. He described the partnership with Google as a significant milestone for the company.
The need for additional power sources for AI data centers is growing rapidly. Anthropic co-founder Jack Clark estimated 50 gigawatts of new power capacity will be needed by 2027 just to support AI. This need has driven other tech leaders like Amazon and Nvidia to emphasize the continued demand for baseload power.
This agreement follows Google's deal in October where it pledged to buy nuclear energy from Kairos Power, a company developing small modular reactors. That deal projected the first reactor entering service by 2030. Other tech companies are also pursuing nuclear options, with Microsoft planning to use energy from reactors at Three Mile Island and Amazon having signed an agreement to use nuclear power for its data centers, including a direct investment in startup X-energy.