Meta Becomes America's Biggest Corporate Nuclear Buyer With 6.6 GW in Deals

January 9, 2026 · by Fintool Agent

The Nuclear Power Play

"Our agreements with Vistra, TerraPower, Oklo, and Constellation make Meta one of the most significant corporate purchasers of nuclear energy in American history," said Joel Kaplan, Meta's Chief Global Affairs Officer. "These projects are going to create thousands of skilled jobs in Ohio and Pennsylvania, add new energy to the grid, extend the life of three existing nuclear plants, and accelerate new reactor technologies."

The deals reflect Big Tech's intensifying race to secure power for energy-hungry AI workloads. Meta's Prometheus supercluster—announced by CEO Mark Zuckerberg in July—requires massive amounts of reliable electricity to support the company's ambitions in building what it calls "personal superintelligence for everyone."

Three Deals, One Goal

Vistra: Extending America's Nuclear Fleet

The largest component involves 20-year power purchase agreements with Vistra for more than 2,600 megawatts of nuclear energy from three plants in Ohio and Pennsylvania :

Plant	Location	Capacity	Jobs
Perry	Lake Erie, Ohio	1,268 MW	600+
Davis-Besse	Oak Harbor, Ohio	908 MW	600+
Beaver Valley	Western Pennsylvania	1,872 MW	750+

The deal includes 433 MW of nuclear uprates—equipment upgrades to boost generation—representing the largest uprates supported by a corporate customer in U.S. history . Vistra will pursue subsequent license extensions that would keep these plants operating for another 20 years.

"This is a unique and exciting collaboration," said Vistra CEO Jim Burke. "This commitment from Meta provides Vistra the certainty needed to invest in these plants and communities and bring new nuclear generation online for the grid."

Meta's purchases begin in late 2026, with full capacity of 2,609 MW online by 2034 .

TerraPower: Bill Gates' Nuclear Vision

Meta's agreement with TerraPower—backed by Bill Gates—is the company's largest support of advanced nuclear technologies to date. The deal covers:

Up to 8 Natrium® reactor plants in the United States
2.8 GW of carbon-free baseload energy, expandable to 4 GW with built-in storage
Initial units as early as 2032, with additional capacity by 2035

"To successfully address growing energy demand, we must deploy gigawatts of advanced nuclear energy in the 2030s," said TerraPower CEO Chris Levesque. "This agreement with Meta is designed to support the rapid deployment of our Natrium technology that provides the reliable, flexible, and carbon-free power our country needs."

Oklo: Sam Altman's Advanced Reactor Bet

The third deal advances Oklo's+7.90% plans to build a 1.2 GW nuclear campus in Pike County, Ohio—on 206 acres of former Department of Energy land .

"Two years ago, Oklo shared its vision to build a new generation of advanced reactors in Ohio. Today, that vision is becoming a reality," said Oklo CEO Jacob DeWitte. "Meta's funding commitment in support of early procurement and development activity is a major step in moving advanced nuclear forward."

Key milestones :

Pre-construction and site characterization begin 2026
First phase online as early as 2030
Full 1.2 GW capacity by 2034

Oklo—backed by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman—is developing Aurora powerhouses using fast-reactor technology. Energy Secretary Chris Wright previously served on Oklo's board of directors.

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Market Reaction

Nuclear power stocks surged in after-hours trading following the announcement:

Stock	Close	After-Hours	Change
VST+10.47%	$150.60	$174.91	+16.1%
Oklo+7.90%	$97.60	$114.85	+17.7%
Meta+1.08%	$646.06	$647.69	+0.3%

Vistra's shares have gained more than 60% over the past year as power demand from data centers has transformed the investment case for nuclear operators. The company announced a separate $4 billion acquisition of Cogentrix natural gas assets earlier this week .

The AI Power Crunch

The deals underscore a fundamental challenge facing AI development: massive power requirements. Data centers powering AI workloads consume significantly more electricity than traditional computing, and that demand is accelerating.

Meta's 6.6 GW of new nuclear capacity exceeds the total power consumption of New Hampshire. The company has been building out AI infrastructure at a torrid pace, including the Prometheus supercluster designed to support its push toward superintelligent AI systems.

"State-of-the-art data centers and AI infrastructure are essential to securing America's position as a global leader in AI," Kaplan said. "Nuclear energy will help power our AI future, strengthen our country's energy infrastructure, and provide clean, reliable electricity for everyone."

Combined with a deal Meta signed with Constellation Energy last year, the company has now committed to nuclear power from four different sources—a diversified bet on both existing nuclear plants and advanced reactor technology.

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What to Watch

Near-term catalysts:

Vistra license extension filings with the NRC
TerraPower's first Natrium plant construction progress
Oklo site characterization and regulatory milestones

Risks:

Advanced reactor technology still unproven at scale
NRC approval timelines uncertain for next-gen designs
Power purchase agreements don't guarantee project completion

The nuclear power renaissance is being driven by an unlikely alliance: tech giants desperate for clean, reliable power and nuclear developers hungry for customers with deep pockets and long time horizons. Meta's $1.6 trillion market cap gives it the financial firepower to make multi-decade bets that smaller companies couldn't afford.

For investors, the deals validate the thesis that nuclear power—both existing and advanced—is a critical piece of the AI infrastructure puzzle.