Dive Brief:
- Amazon has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with Constellation Energy to expand and improve Maryland’s sole nuclear plant, which is also the state’s largest source of clean energy, the companies announced Wednesday.
- The tech giant and the energy producer said the agreement will allow for over $3 billion in Maryland infrastructure, including renovations at the 1,790-megawatt Calvert Cliffs Clean Energy Center. The deal will also enable around 190 MW of new generating capacity, expected to come online between 2030 and 2032.
- Constellation — the largest producer of clean energy and largest nuclear energy company in the United States — said in the Sept. 30 release that the investment and revenue certainty from the PPA will allow it to relicense the nuclear plant for another two decades. The company said the extension will allow for the development of new clean energy power plants at the site and enhance Maryland’s supply of carbon-free energy.
Dive Insight:
Through the agreement, Amazon will receive 690 MW of power from the nuclear plant, including the 190 MW uprate.
The tech and e-commerce company has also entered a separate retail supply agreement with Constellation to support its operations in the 13-state PJM market, according to the release. PJM is the largest power grid operator in the U.S. and centrally dispatches generation and oversees the movement of wholesale electricity in all or parts of Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia.
All the electricity generated by the Maryland nuclear plant will flow to the PJM regional grid as usual, Constellation said. The deal demonstrates “how large energy users can support investments in new, reliable generation while strengthening the broader electric system,” the energy company added.
The companies said the agreement will help Amazon manage its energy costs for facilities located in the region.
"Amazon is committed to investing in carbon-free energy to strengthen the grid and benefit the communities where we operate," Kerry Person, Amazon Web Services vice president of global operations and data center delivery, said in the release. "This long-term agreement with Constellation sustains the continued operation and expansion of Maryland's largest source of carbon-free energy, supports hundreds of jobs, and brings significant new generation to the regional grid.”
The Calvert Cliffs plant generates roughly 80% of Maryland’s clean energy, producing enough electricity to power approximately 1.3 million homes, according to the release.
Constellation has recently inked deals with several companies that are increasingly turning to nuclear energy to power their operations and make progress on their sustainability goals.
Earlier this year, retail giant Walmart entered a long-term PPA with Constellation that will provide the retailer with nuclear energy, environmental attributes and energy capacity to support its Illinois operations.
That followed a separate nuclear PPA Constellation signed with Meta last year, which gives the social media and tech conglomerate access to zero emissions power for its AI goals, while helping keep an Illinois nuclear facility online. The agreement will give Meta 1,121 megawatts of nuclear energy beginning in June 2027.
