Amazon’s nuclear energy deals will enable the construction of new small modular reactors. Here’s what to know

Today, Amazon’s subsidiary in cloud computing, Amazon Web Services (AWS), announced the signing of three new agreements to support the development of nuclear energy projects. The deals will enable, among other things, the construction of various new small modular reactors, or SMRs, Amazon said on Wednesday.

SMRs are an advanced form of nuclear reactor containing a small physical footprint that allows it to be built closer to the grid. On top of that, they have faster manufacturing times than traditional reactors, allowing them to come online sooner. Nuclear reactors also produce no carbon emissions.

Amazon says today’s announcement is part of its path to net-zero carbon emissions. Like other Big Tech giants, Amazon is seeing an increased need for clean energy as it grows its generative AI services.

“Nuclear is a safe source of carbon-free energy that can help power our operations and meet the growing demands of our customers, while helping us progress toward our Climate Pledge commitment to be net-zero carbon across our operations by 2040,” said Matt Garman, CEO of Amazon Web Services (AWS) in Amzon’s report.

Big Tech goes nuclear

Amazon is the latest Big Tech company to lean into nuclear power in the age of high-powered artificial intelligence. Earlier this week, Google signed an agreement to buy power from multiple small modular reactors. And last month, Constellation Energy announced a 20-year deal with Microsoft that would see it reopening its infamous Three Mile Island power plant.

AWS signed an agreement with Washington State’s Energy Northwest, a public power joint operating agency. The reactors are expected to generate about 320 megawatts (MW) of capacity, or the maximum amount of power that a plant can hold, in the first phase of the project. It will have the option to increase to 960 MW—enough energy to power 770,000 homes in the United States.

These projects are expected to meet the anticipated energy needs of the Pacific Northwest starting in the early 2030s.

Amazon says it is also investing in X-energy, a private nuclear reactor and fuel design engineering company. This investment will include the manufacturing capabilities to produce SMR equipment that will support over five gigawatts of new nuclear energy projects using X-energy’s technology.

In Virginia, Amazon signed an agreement with Dominion Energy, a utility company, to develop an SMR project near the existing nuclear power station, North Anna. AWS is hoping to bring at least 300 MW of power to the Virginia region. Dominion forecasts an 85% increase in power demand over the next 15 years.

“One of the fastest ways to address climate change is by transitioning our society to carbon-free energy sources, and nuclear energy is both carbon-free and able to scale—which is why it’s an important area of investment for Amazon,” said Garman.