DOE Loans $1.9 Billion to Restart Iowa's Duane Arnold Nuclear Plant

NextEra Energy has secured a federal loan of up to $1.9 billion from the Department of Energy to restart Iowa's Duane Arnold Energy Center, a 615-megawatt nuclear facility in Linn County that operated for 45 years before closing in 2020 as Iowa's sole nuclear power plant. NextEra aims to bring the reactor back online by the first quarter of 2029, subject to final oversight and licensing approvals from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

 

The project cleared a major state regulatory hurdle in June when the Iowa Utilities Commission issued a certificate authorising construction and operation. The restart is anchored by a 25-year power purchase agreement with Alphabet's Google, which will buy electricity from the plant, reflecting surging power demand from AI data centres and other high-tech computing infrastructure that is pressuring the national electrical grid and driving renewed interest in extending or restoring nuclear generation capacity.

 

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An economic study estimates the restart will generate more than $9 billion in economic value for Iowa over 25 years, create thousands of construction and refurbishment jobs, support more than 400 permanent, high-paying operational positions, and generate approximately $75 million in tax revenue. Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has signed legislation providing incentives for nuclear power development in support of the effort.

 

NextEra Energy CEO John Ketchum said bringing new generation online to serve rising demand could help keep power affordable for existing customers, ensuring Iowa families and businesses are not asked to bear the costs of grid growth.

 

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While multiple efforts are underway nationwide to reactivate retired reactors, no shuttered US nuclear power plant has yet resumed operations, meaning Duane Arnold would be the first of its kind to complete this process if NextEra's 2029 target is achieved.