The traditional electrical grid is experiencing an unprecedented structural crisis. According to the International Energy Agency’s April 2026 report, global data center electricity consumption reached 485 terawatt-hours in 2025 — growing 17 percent year-on-year — with AI-focused facilities surging 50 percent, driven by capital expenditure from five technology companies exceeding $400 billion, itself projected to grow a further 75 percent in 2026.
This documentary examines the techno-economic and regulatory architecture of corporate America’s most consequential energy pivot. We analyze how Microsoft secured an 835-megawatt, 20-year power purchase agreement with Constellation Energy to restart Three Mile Island Unit 1 — the first retired nuclear reactor in history restarted for a single corporate client — backed by $1.6 billion in private investment and a $1 billion Department of Energy loan closed in November 2025. We investigate Amazon’s 1.92-gigawatt Susquehanna PPA through 2042, Google’s world-first corporate SMR fleet agreement with Kairos Power for 500 megawatts by 2035, and Meta’s request for proposals covering one to four gigawatts of new nuclear capacity. The IEA’s conditional SMR offtake pipeline grew from 25 gigawatts at the end of 2024 to 45 gigawatts by April 2026.
We examine the economic consequences for ordinary households: PJM capacity auction prices surged 833 percent between 2024 and 2025, Senator Warner’s analysis projects average household electricity bills rising $70 per month by 2028, and a Consumer Reports survey found 78 percent of Americans are concerned data centers will raise their electricity costs. Community opposition blocked or delayed $98 billion in data center projects between March and June 2025 alone, while Virginia considered 61 separate legislative bills in its 2026 session.