Nvidia and PreussenElektra to Study Closed German Nuclear Sites

Nvidia will work with German energy company PreussenElektra (PEL) to investigate whether decommissioned nuclear power plant sites in Germany could be turned into AI data centers. In a formal announcement on October 21, the US chipmaker and the German firm said they had entered a preliminary collaboration on the idea.

One notable detail is that the plan does not involve powering future data centers with nuclear energy. The focus is instead on making use of the electricity, water and other infrastructure already present at these sites. For now the work is an open-ended assessment, and its outcome is unclear.

Why power plant sites are attractive

Building a new data center is about far more than hardware investment. Developers have to find suitably located land, secure industrial-zone permits, sit close to water infrastructure for cooling and obtain a high-voltage grid connection. Nuclear plant sites already meet most of these conditions.

Nvidia hopes that reusing such sites could significantly cut costs and development times. The initiative stands out as part of the search for an alternative to building huge data centers from scratch, at a time when investment in AI infrastructure is surging to unprecedented levels.

What will be assessed, and what was said

According to the announcement, the review will cover existing grid connections, available land and industrial infrastructure. The aim is to determine whether the sites can meet the demanding operating requirements of AI factories.

PEL Chairman Guido Knott said the former plant sites have valuable industrial infrastructure and offer new, forward-looking opportunities for use. He said the company aims to carry out a robust assessment with Nvidia of how and to what extent those conditions could serve AI factories. In Knott's view, the approach combines responsible reuse of the sites with new economic opportunities for the surrounding regions.

Markus Hacker, Senior Director for the region at Nvidia, said AI factories need access to power, land and high-capacity infrastructure, and that former industrial sites could provide a strong foundation for this new generation of computing. Hacker said the two companies would evaluate how the sites could meet the technical and operational requirements of AI factories and how they could contribute to high-performance AI infrastructure in Germany.

Germany's nuclear past and what remains uncertain

Germany permanently shut down its last operating nuclear plants in April 2023. Dismantling is under way at about 30 nuclear plants across the country. PreussenElektra is responsible for decommissioning and dismantling eight of them, and the sites to be examined are reportedly likely to be among those locations.

The companies stress that the data center assessment is strictly an experimental feasibility study. For now there is no announced investment figure, approved development plan or finalized construction agreement. Whether any of these sites actually becomes an AI data center will therefore depend on the results of the review.