Like its competitors, Amazon will resort to nuclear power to cover the increase in its electricity needs. The firm has unveiled its projects in Virginia, Pennsylvania and Washington State.
After Microsoft, Oracle and Google, it is Amazon’s turn to unveil its atomic exploitation projects. The e-commerce and cloud giant recently announced that it would cover all of its electricity needs with green energy, but its needs are increasing and the firm is looking for new sources of carbon-free energy, hence the use of nuclear power.
“One of the fastest ways to combat climate change is to transition our society to carbon-free energy sources. Nuclear power is both carbon-free and scaleable – which is why it’s an important area of investment for Amazon. Our agreements will encourage the construction of new nuclear technologies that will produce energy for decades to come,” said Matt Garman, CEO of Amazon Web Services.
Amazona announces three agreements with electrical suppliers. In Washington state, the hyperscaler is partnering with the public consortium Energy Northwest for the development of small modular reactors (SMR) – the same technology as its competitors. Amazon has also invested in the company X-energy, responsible for designing the reactors. The latter should provide 320 MW in a first phase and could eventually reach 960 MW, or the electricity consumption of 770,000 American homes. The reactors should cover Amazon’s energy needs in the region in the early 2030s. Once operational, the project will employ around a hundred people.
The second project concerns Virginia. Amazon has reached an agreement with Dominion Energy to explore the development of a modular reactor near an existing Dominion nuclear power plant. The new infrastructure is expected to produce 300 MW in the region.
Finally, Amazon plans to build a data center next to the Talen Energy nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania. The latter will directly power the data center.
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