Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Strategic CSR

Tuesday, October 8, 2024

Strategic CSR - Three Mile Island

The article in the url below, covering the revival of Three Mile Island (the site of the worst nuclear accident in the U.S.), is interesting for a few reasons. First is that it can be revived at all – I had no idea it was only one reactor that failed – a second one is perfectly usable and had been operating up until a few years ago:

"Three Mile Island's undamaged Unit 1 reactor sits next to Unit 2, which was shut down after a partial core meltdown in 1979 led to five days of panic. The incident heightened awareness of nuclear plants' potential safety problems and contributed to a loss of enthusiasm for the industry that lasted decades. But the 835-megawatt Unit 1 continued operating and closed only under economic pressure five years ago."

The issue appears to have been the growing competitive pricing of renewable energy sources:

"Years of flat U.S. power demand had created a bruising battle for market share. Nuclear plants had a tough time competing against renewable energy and natural-gas-fired plants that tapped into a cheap source of fuel from the U.S. shale boom."

The second reason is Microsoft's creative decision to fund this revival in the form of an exclusive energy supply:

"Constellation expects to spend around $1.6 billion to restart the reactor by early 2028. Microsoft has signed a 20-year power-purchase agreement with Constellation, the companies said Friday. The deal would help Microsoft pair its 24-7 electricity use with a matching source of nearby clean power generation."

As a related story in Bloomberg noted:

"Microsoft has agreed to purchase the energy for two decades and declined to disclose financial terms. This is the first time Microsoft has secured a dedicated, 100% nuclear facility for its use."

And the third reason is what is driving the demand from Microsoft:

"A deal between Constellation Energy and Microsoft will restart Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island, the site of the country's worst nuclear power accident, to help power the tech giant's growing artificial intelligence ambitions. Under the agreement, Constellation would revive the plant's undamaged reactor, which was too costly to run and closed in 2019, and sell the power to Microsoft. The plan signals the gargantuan amount of power needed for data centers for AI, along with the tech industry's thirst for a carbon-free, round-the-clock electricity source needed to meet climate goals."

Take care

David

David Chandler

Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Sustainable Value Creation (6e)

Instructor Teaching and Student Study Site: https://study.sagepub.com/chandler6e

Strategic CSR Simulation: http://www.strategiccsrsim.com/

The library of CSR Newsletters are archived at: https://strategiccsr-sage.blogspot.com/

Three Mile Island's Rebirth: Microsoft AI power Source

By Jennifer Hiller

September 21-22, 2024

The Wall Street Journal

Late Edition – Final