Google goes nuclear for small reactors by 2030 in new data centre strategy

The tech giant is taking a radical step in backing nuclear power to supply energy for its increasingly energy-hungry AI data centres

Google is to back a wave of newly-built nuclear reactors to power its data centres.

In a radical move, the tech giant says that it will be an anchor customer for a fleet of new “small modular reactors” to help address the challenges around powering its operations in an age of power-hungry artificial intelligence (AI).

It is the first big tech company to turn to nuclear energy in such a focused way.

The first reactors are expected to come on stream in the US by 2030.

The move comes as controversy continues to swirl about the effect of data centres and AI requirements on the national energy grid in Ireland and other countries.

Recent figures from the Central Statistics Office showed that the percentage of Ireland’s electricity supply being used by data centres jumped from 5pc in 2015 to 21pc last year.

Despite restrictions being placed on connecting them to the grid, their consumption of electricity continues to grow, increasing by 20pc in the last year alone.

“Nuclear solutions offer a clean, round-the-clock power source that can help us reliably meet electricity demands with carbon-free energy every hour of every day,” said Michael Terrell, the company’s director of energy.

“Advancing these power sources in close partnership with supportive local communities will rapidly drive the decarbonisation of electricity grids around the world. The grid needs new electricity sources to support AI technologies that are powering major scientific advances, improving services for businesses and customers.”

Google has not said where in the US the nuclear reactors will be built, or whether it has plans to expand its nuclear ambitions into other countries and regions.

The US company constructing the reactors, Kairos Power, has yet to open its first completed facility and must gain final clearance from regulatory authorities.

Nuclear reactors can take decades to build and decommission. However, Kairos Power says that it uses a “molten-salt cooling system, combined with a ceramic, pebble-type fuel”, to transport heat to a steam turbine to generate power.

This system purportedly allows a more affordable nuclear reactor design.

“Using an iterative development approach, Kairos Power will complete multiple successive hardware demonstrations ahead of its first commercial plant,” said Mr Terrell,

“This will enable critical learnings and efficiency improvements that accelerate reactor deployments, as well as greater cost certainty for Google and other customers.”

The power requirements of data centres has become a political issue in Ireland in recent years.

Last month, Dublin’s Lord Mayor, James Geoghegan, launched an attack on planning refusals for data centres in Ireland.

“Planning authorities in this city are refusing applications for new data centres, citing the existing insufficient capacity in the electricity network and the lack of significant on-site renewable energy to power the data center as reasons,” he said.

“Data centres are indispensable for the AI revolution. We can't afford a narrow worldview as to their role in delivering an infrastructure that maintains, develops and grows an economy to meet the technological advancements of the 21st century. The answer to the inevitable expansion of data centres across the globe is not for Ireland to shut its doors.”

His comments came after it was revealed that Ireland has secured none of Amazon Web Services’ (AWS) new €35bn investment round in Europe.

In September, AWS said it plans to invest £8bn (€9.47bn) in the UK over the next five years on building, operating, and maintaining data centres.

In the UK, data centres are set to be classified as critical national infrastructure alongside the likes of emergency services, finance and healthcare systems, and energy and water supplies, putting them in line for government support in the event of a major incident, such as a cyber attack or extreme weather.

Reporting on:independent.ie