Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Restart Project Faces Many Challenges

Constellation Energy and Microsoft plan to revive the Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant (photo: x @ConstellationEG)

JAKARTA Constellation Energy and Microsoft plan to revive the Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant in Pennsylvania in the hope of providing environmentally friendly energy sources for data centers used in artificial intelligence (AI). However, this $1.6 billion project is faced with a number of hurdles such as regulation, supply chain bottlenecks, and local opposition.

The Three Mile Island Plant was once notorious for a partial incident of Unit 2 reactor damage in 1979. The plan includes a Unit 1 restart, which closed five years ago after operating safely for decades. If successful, Unit 1 is expected to resume operations in 2028 to support Microsoft's data center electricity consumption.

However, as Kate Fowler said, the global nuclear energy leader of risk advisory firm Marsh, "No one has ever done this before, so challenges will definitely arise." Supply chain issues have come to key attention since the close of Unit 1 in 2019, coupled with Washington's restrictions on enriched uranium following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

In addition, the project also requires approval from the busy US Nuclear Supervisory Commission (NRC) with many new reactor licensing applications, including those from high-tech modular reactor types. Although President Joe Biden has signed legislation to speed up the licensing process, the company's proposed schedule will still be a big challenge for the NRC.

The project also faces opposition from local residents who still have memories of the 1979 incident. Edwin Lyman, a nuclear safety expert from the Union of Concerned Scientists, warned that Constellation will face technical problems that may be expensive and take time to improve, especially on sensitive components that have not been used for a long time.

In addition, surface and ground water modification permits must be obtained from the Susquehanna River Commission, which will review the potential environmental impact of the request.

Four years is considered sufficient by some experts to address technical challenges on Three Mile Island, but community engagement will be key to the success of the project, especially given past incidents affecting public confidence in nuclear safety at the site.