Key Takeaways
- Meta on Friday announced deals with a trio of nuclear energy companies to power its data centers.
- Vistra will provide energy from its current reactors, while startups Oklo and TerraPower will sell Meta power as they build reactors into the 2030s, the companies said.
Several nuclear energy stocks surged Friday morning thanks to new agreements with a Big Tech giant.
Facebook and Instagram parent Meta Platforms (META) said Friday it’s reached agreements with nuclear energy provider Vistra Corp. (VST), along with startup Oklo (OKLO) and Bill Gates-backed TerraPower. The Vistra deal will provide power to Meta from its currently operating reactors, while the startup deals will help the younger companies build their smaller nuclear reactors. Meta expects the Oklo and TerraPower reactors to come online between 2030 and 2035, the company said.
In total, Meta expects to add 6.6 gigawatts of power capacity to its data center network by 2035. Financial terms of the deals were not disclosed in Friday’s release.
Vistra and Oklo shares each surged close to 14% Friday morning. Other nuclear stocks, including NuScale Power (SMR), Constellation Energy (CEG), and Nano Nuclear Energy (NNE), also gained. Meta shares were little changed.
Why This Matters to You
A number of Big Tech leaders have struck deals with nuclear and other clean energy companies in recent months to secure the power needed to run their AI data centers. Finding their own energy sources has been a priority for these firms, as data centers require large amounts of power and can drive up electricity costs in the surrounding area.
“We believe this news is incrementally positive for the entire nuclear energy industry, including OKLO, as it reaffirms the commitment from hyperscalers to start leveraging new energy sources to fuel the AI Revolution with power being the biggest headwind to the industry,” Wedbush analysts wrote Friday.
Related Education
Meta reached a deal last year to buy nuclear power from Constellation Energy, as a number of its peers also signed their own deals with nuclear providers and startups as they look to boost their AI capacity.