Energy Secretary Chris Wright on Tuesday announced a $1 billion loan to Constellation Energy Generation to reopen a nuclear reactor in Pennsylvania. File Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI | License Photo
The Trump administration has announced it is issuing a $1 billion loan to restart a Pennsylvania nuclear power plant.
Announced Tuesday by the Department of Energy, the loan to Constellation Energy Generation is earmarked to help finance the resurrection of the 835-megawatt Three Mile Island reactor in Londonderry Township, Pa., which ceased operations in 2019 but was never fully decommissioned.
The move comes as the Trump administration has sought to bolster nuclear energy production in the United States, in align with President Donald Trump’s campaign pledge to make the country energy independent.
In May, Trump signed a slew of executive orders to hasten the development of nuclear power plants.
“DOE’s quick action and leadership is another huge step towards bringing hundreds of megawatts of reliable nuclear power onto the grid at this critical moment,” Joe Dominguez, president and CEO of Constellation, said in a statement.
According to the company, the loan will lower its cost of financing costs and leverage private investment for the project. When up and running, the reactor will provide power for the equivalent of an estimated 800,000 homes in the PJM Interconnection region of 13 states in the Eastern United States.
The announcement comes a little more than a year after Constellation signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with Microsoft to restart the facility.
Three Mile Island’s remaining reactor, Unit 1, has since been rebranded by Constellation as the Crane Clean Energy Center.
“Constellation’s restart of a nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania will provide affordable, reliable and secure energy to Americans across the mid-Atlantic region,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a statement.
“It will also help ensure America has the energy it needs to grow its domestic manufacturing base and win the AI race.”
According to Constellation, the Crane Clean Energy Center is currently 80% staffed with more than 500 employees.
