Crane's restart: Microsoft PPA executed, $1B DOE loan closed, NRC approval still pending

Constellation’s plan to restart Three Mile Island Unit 1 as the Crane Clean Energy Center has moved from a 2024 announcement to a 2025-2026 package of concrete financing and permitting actions. The Microsoft power purchase agreement is a 20-year contract. In November 2025, DOE said it closed a $1 billion loan to Constellation for the 835 MW restart. Pennsylvania DEP issued a draft NPDES permit on April 2, 2026. Restart still depends on U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission review and approval.

• PUCT approved Crusoe/Ensign 260 MW co-location with strict curtailment terms – The Commission’s July 23, 2026 final order in Docket 59220 approved the 260 MW Crusoe Two load tied to the GOODNIT1 wind resource, but required full curtailment within 30 minutes of ERCOT instruction, 60-minute notice when practicable, and breaker-level disconnection.
• PJM Board directs Large Load Registry, backstop procurement, and IRAS – PJM’s July 27, 2026 Board action directs a FERC filing setting a Reliability Backstop Procurement starting September 2026 and Interim Resource Adequacy Service for certain new large loads as of June 1, 2027.
• PJM projects 70 GW of new large-load growth by 2038 – PJM’s 2028/2029 Base Residual Auction cleared 6,831 MW below the reliability requirement, the shortfall PJM ties to its backstop procurement target.
• India’s solar challenge shifts from generation to managing the midday surplus, with attention to storage, transmission, and daytime demand from industry and data centers.