Equinix signs deals for nukes and fuel cells to power its AI bit barns

Datacenter giant looks for energy sources outside the grid

Updated Equinix is doing deals with alternative energy providers to support the needs of its datacenters globally, including nuclear options and fuel cell deployments, as the AI fad continues to push a bit barn build boom.

As one of the largest datacenter operators in the world, Equinix says it is working with firms developing reliable and sustainable electricity generation technology as part of its diversified portfolio power strategy, in a bid to side-step potential power constraints in the future.

The agreements announced on Thursday comprise four with nuclear companies, and one providing solid-oxide fuel cells. The nuclear ones are not likely to deliver for several years, since the technologies are still under development in some cases.

Nevertheless, Equinix says it sees nuclear energy as "a promising solution" to help power both datacenters and the broader grid.

Two of the firms it has partnered with here - Oklo and Radiant Industries - are also part of the US Department of Energy's (DOE) Nuclear Reactor Pilot Program, aimed at developing new advanced reactors.

With Oklo, Equinix has signed an agreement to procure 500 MW of energy from the company's so-called Aurora powerhouses, which are designed to look like small domestic dwellings. Oklo says it expects to deploy its first commercial advanced reactor in the US before the end of the decade.

In the case of Radiant, Equinix has a preorder agreement for the purchase of 20 of that company's Kaleidos microreactors, which are small enough to fit on a trailer and provide 1 MW of energy. The company recently inked a deal to kit out a US military base with the devices by 2028.

ULC-Energy is a Netherlands company, and it has signed a Letter of Intent with Equinix for a power purchase agreement (PPA) of up to 250 MW to power its datacenters in the country. The firm says it is the Dutch developer of the Rolls-Royce SMR (small modular reactor), a design set to be deployed in the UK by Great British Nuclear.

Equinix likewise has a preorder power agreement for 500 MW with Stellaria, a start-up founded by Schneider-Electric and the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA). It is aiming for first fission by 2029 and production by 2035.

In the case of solid-oxide fuel cells, the firm says it has an agreement with Bloom Energy for a deployment of more than 100 MW worth of these at over 19 datacenters in six US states to provide onsite power generation.

We asked Equinix if this was to provide primary power or to serve as a backup power source, and it told us: "Our Bloom Energy fuel cell deployments vary from primary power to operating grid-parallel, meaning if we lose the Bloom supply, the utility feed automatically picks up the load with no operational impact to the site."

Backup power is the typical application for fuel cells in datacenters, as a "greener" replacement for diesel generators, although projects in Japan and Ireland have declared an intention to develop bit barn campuses powered largely or entirely by them.

"As energy demand increases, we believe we have an opportunity and responsibility to support the development of reliable, sustainable, scalable energy infrastructure that can support our collective future," said Equinix EVP of Global Operations Raouf Abdel.

"By working with our energy partners, we believe we can support the energy needs of our customers and communities around the world by helping to strengthen the grid and investing in new energy sources."

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Updated to add on August 15:

We asked about what fuel the system utilizes, and an Equinix spokesperson responded: "The Bloom systems run on natural gas. They strip the hydrogen out of the natural gas and that becomes the feedstock for the fuel cells. So, instead or burning the natural gas to spin a turbine to produce electricity, the hydrogen flows through the fuel cells and the chemical reaction of it passing through the cells produces electricity."

Asked when the nuclear deals are expected to deliver – we note the Rolls-Royce SMRs in the ULC-Energy agreement are still under development – a company spokesperson said: "We see next generation nuclear technology as part of our long-term power strategy for the next wave of technology and power solutioning. These are still several years away from deployment – at least the early 2030s."