October 15, 2024 – On Monday, Google announced that it had signed a power purchase agreement with Kairos Power, a company specializing in small modular reactors (SMRs). Under the agreement, Google intends to acquire electricity from six to seven SMRs, totaling 500 megawatts, to meet the growing energy demands of its artificial intelligence operations.
According to the terms of the deal, the first SMR is expected to be operational by 2030, followed by additional deployments through 2035. Both companies have maintained confidentiality regarding the financial specifics and the location of the plant.
Kairos Power’s technology, notably, utilizes a molten salt cooling system combined with ceramic, pebble-shaped fuel. This efficient heat transfer mechanism powers steam turbines to generate electricity. The passive safety features of this system enable the reactors to operate at lower pressures, resulting in a simpler and more cost-effective nuclear reactor design.
Interestingly, this announcement comes just weeks after Microsoft revealed its partnership with Constellation Energy. The tech giant plans to use energy from the currently shuttered Three Mile Island nuclear power plant to power its AI servers. The reactor is anticipated to be back online sometime in 2028.
Earlier this year, Microsoft also announced a separate agreement with Helion Energy, aiming to utilize electricity generated by a nuclear fusion reactor. Similarly, this reactor is expected to be operational by 2028.
