The US Department of Energy has approved a $1.9 billion loan to NextEra Energy to restart the Duane Arnold Energy Center, a 615-megawatt nuclear plant in Linn County, Iowa, that has been offline since 2020. The electricity generated will be sold to Google to power its AI data centres, marking a significant step in the tech industry's search for reliable, low-emission energy as demand from data centres surges. NextEra says the project will also bolster local grid reliability and create thousands of direct and indirect jobs.

The plant was originally due for decommissioning but was knocked offline early after a tropical storm with 140mph gusts destroyed its cooling towers in August 2020. NextEra now plans to bring it back into operation by 2029. The deal is notable for Google, which met its goal of offsetting energy use with renewables back in 2018 but has since turned to sources such as natural gas at some data centres; nuclear power offers a comparatively clean alternative, though it still leaves the issue of radioactive waste unresolved. The loan is also part of a wider DOE push to restart three mothballed nuclear plants to help meet growing electricity demand.