The Trump administration will provide Constellation Energy with a$1 billion loan to restart the Crane Clean Energy Center nuclear plant in Pennsylvania,Department of Energy officials said Tuesday.
Previously known as Three Mile Island Unit 1,the plant is expected to start generating power again in 2027.Constellation unveiled plans to rename and restart the reactor in Sept.2024 through a power purchase agreement with Microsoft
to support the tech company’s data center demand in the region.
Three Mile Island Unit 1 ceased operations in 2019,one of a dozen reactors that closed in recent years as nuclear struggled to compete against cheap natural gas.It sits on the same site as Three Mile Island Unit 2,the reactor that partially melted down in 1979 in the worst nuclear accident in U.S.history.
The loan would cover the majority to the project’s estimated cost of$1.6 billion.The first advance to Constellation is expected in the first quarter of 2026,said Greg Beard,senior advisor to the Energy Department’s Loan Programs Office,in a call with reporters.The loan comes with a guarantee from Constellation that it will protect taxpayer money,Beard said.
Constellation’s stock was up more than 2%in after hours trading on Tuesday.
CEO Joe Dominguez hinted at federal financial support previously,telling investors in Sept.2024 that Constellation would“take a look as we finance the project at loan guarantees and other things that will be available.”Constellation is the largest operator of nuclear plants in the U.S.
When asked why Constellation was receiving the loan now,Beard said Tuesday that Constellation could have completed the project without help from the Energy Department.But the loan will help make electricity cheaper for consumers on the grid operated by PJM Interconnection,which serves more than 65 million people across 13 states,Beard said.
“What’s important for the administration is to show support for affordable,reliable,secure energy in the U.S.,”Beard told reporters.“This loan to Constellation will lower the cost of capital and make power cheaper for those PJM ratepayers.”
