Inside Amazon's nuclear ambitions, its 'Piano Man' project, and CEO Andy Jassy's support

• Amazon wants to grow its usage of atomic powerfulness to meet rising AI power needs.
• The company's power strategy squad precocious sounded CEO Andy Jassy connected nan benefits of atomic power.
• Amazon has looked into different power sources, specified arsenic earthy state and geothermal.

In June, Amazon's Global Energy Strategy squad sounded CEO Andy Jassy nan thought of doubling down connected nuclear power to support its increasing web of data centers.

The group based on that atomic tin beryllium much reliable and cost-efficient than different cleanable power sources, specified arsenic upwind and solar. Jassy agreed, according to an soul Amazon archive from nan 3rd 4th that was obtained by Business Insider.

"We person beardown condemnation that atomic powerfulness is nan astir economical and reliable way to standard c free power to meet nan adjacent decade's accelerated capacity growth," nan company's power strategy squad wrote. "We took this condemnation to Andy Jassy successful June 2024, and received support to execute against our projected description to nan c free power strategy done caller atomic generation."

Fast guardant a fewer months and Amazon's atomic ambitions are becoming clearer. Last week, Amazon led a $500 cardinal finance successful X-energy to create mini modular reactors, pursuing an earlier deal to bargain powerfulness from a atomic works successful Pennsylvania.

Generative AI is nan main logic for this abrupt liking successful atomic energy. Running these caller AI workloads successful information centers requires way much electricity than accepted computing tasks. Burning more coal and different fossil fuels is bad for nan environment, truthful atomic is an charismatic alternative, contempt its checkered information record.

Amazon sees atomic arsenic a cardinal portion of dealing pinch this AI-driven surge successful power demand. The institution considered tapping into astatine slightest 4 further existing atomic powerfulness plants and sought moreover much mini modular reactor deals. It besides looked astatine different power sources, specified arsenic geothermal, to meet semipermanent renewable power goals, according to nan soul document.

"Machine Learning, GenAl and commercialized capacity request continues to importantly outpace disposable powerfulness capacity globally and requires caller solutions that are reliable, cost-effective and c free," nan archive explained, while noting that occurrence successful this abstraction would thief Amazon Web Services meet customer needs for sustainable information halfway capacity.

Amazon considers each solutions

An Amazon spokesperson said nan last specifications of nan company's plans could beryllium "very different from nan preliminary ideas," and cautioned against drafting conclusions from an "outdated" document.

The unreality elephantine supports much than 500 star and upwind projects, and has been nan largest firm purchaser of renewable power for 4 years successful a row. It's besides investing successful emerging technologies done a Climate Pledge Fund, nan spokesperson added.

"There isn't a one-size-fits-all solution for transitioning to carbon-free power and we judge each viable and scalable options should beryllium considered, truthful we often see a wide scope of projects earlier deciding which ones we move guardant with," nan spokesperson wrote successful a statement.

Big Tech's embrace

Amazon isn't nan only large tech institution embracing atomic to meet AI's insatiable hunger for power.

Google precocious unveiled a business pinch Kairos Power to build mini modular atomic reactors. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman loves talking astir atomic and has backed projects. Microsoft struck a deal to get powerfulness from nan Three Mile Island atomic plant.

That past woody highlights nan atomic industry's troubled past. In 1979, Three Mile Island experienced a awesome disaster that stalled nan US atomic assemblage for decades. There person been moreover worse events successful Chernobyl and Fukushima.

"Piano Man"

Prior to nan June gathering pinch Amazon's Global Energy Strategy team, Jassy approved different atomic scheme successful December 2023, according to nan soul archive obtained by BI.

Under that plan, codenamed "Piano Man," Amazon targeted existing atomic plants that had spare capacity. The institution wanted to motion agreements that gave it entree to "dedicated, reliable power" in nan future. The first task wrong this strategy was announced successful March, erstwhile Amazon agreed to salary $650 cardinal to acquisition power from a atomic powerfulness works successful Pennsylvania, nan soul archive showed.

Amazon considered astatine slightest 4 different akin atomic projects, nan archive stated. One was successful Maryland for an action to usage up to 0.88 gigawatt of energy. Another was successful Texas for 1.2 gigawatts. There were 2 different arrangements successful Pennsylvania for 0.96 gigawatt and 0.9 gigawatt of powerfulness each. In general, a 1 gigawatt works is estimated to person capable capacity to powerfulness astir 876,000 households for a year.

It is unclear whether Amazon is still looking into these types of "Piano Man" deals.

"There are constricted pipeline opportunities aft these projects, but we will proceed to create each feasible options," nan archive explained.

Learning curve

Amazon has besides been "actively conducting owed diligence" connected much than a twelve opportunities successful nan mini modular reactor space. As portion of this, nan institution has developed relationships pinch utilities, atomic building companies, and nan US Department of Energy, according to nan document.

Nuclear powerfulness tin beryllium safer, much reliable, and much cost-efficient successful nan agelong word compared to different powerfulness sources, according to Jacopo Buongiorno, a atomic engineering professor astatine MIT. However, he said immoderate of nan caller precocious mini modular reactors are still being tested and often usage different designs and systems, making them a comparatively riskier option.

"There will beryllium a learning curve because immoderate of these technologies are not mature yet," Buongiorno told BI.

Prioritize 'earlier entree to power'

The soul Amazon archive described nan company's atomic initiatives arsenic portion of a broader "non-standard" power plan. The institution besides looked into powerfulness arrangements for earthy state plants and geothermal energy.

"As we thrust improvement of first of a kind, non-standard power sources wrong nan industry, our scope is chiefly mean to agelong term, supplying powerfulness successful ample amounts beyond 2030," nan archive stated.

In 2024, Amazon's extremity is to present 8 gigawatts of incremental renewable energy, nan archive said. Amazon reached 4.1 gigawatts of renewable power successful 2023 and 10.2 gigawatts successful 2022, it noted.

The soul archive listed nan main "tenets" that nan Global Energy Strategy squad follows. It emphasized delivering "highly reliable, cost-effective" powerfulness connected time, and making bets connected technologies that are "on nan cusp of scaling and wide adoption."

It besides stressed nan request to find nan earliest disposable powerfulness options.

"While we target obtaining ample amounts of powerfulness complete time, we will prioritize opportunities pinch nan earlier entree to power," it said.

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