US Regulators Grant Waiver to Expedite Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant Restart for Microsoft Data Centers

U.S. energy regulators granted a waiver to expedite the restart of the Three Mile Island nuclear plant, now named Crane Clean Energy Center, to power Microsoft's regional data centers. The decision by FERC allows owner Constellation Energy to bypass a potential grid connection delay until 2031, putting the project back on track for a 2027 restart by transferring grid rights from its Eddystone gas plant.

Grid connection timeline

• ▪The Three Mile Island plant is being restarted by its owner, Constellation Energy, under the new name Crane Clean Energy Center
• ▪The restarted Three Mile Island plant is intended to provide power for Microsoft data centers in the region
• ▪Initial feedback from the regional grid operator suggested the plant could not begin supplying power to the grid until 2031
• ▪The FERC waiver puts Constellation Energy back on track for its goal of restarting the plant in 2027

Eddystone rights transfer

• ▪The waiver allows Constellation Energy to transfer certain grid rights from its Eddystone natural gas-fired power plant to Three Mile Island
• ▪The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) granted a waiver to expedite the grid connection of the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania
• ▪The transfer of grid rights will not affect Department of Energy emergency orders keeping the Eddystone plant running past its planned retirement