Avi Salzman

Amazon is going all-in on nuclear power. The tech behemoth will make a down payment on a set of new nuclear reactors in Washington state that can power its data centers and other homes and businesses in the area, the company announced Wednesday. Amazon also will make an equity investment in an upstart nuclear company and study whether to fund a separate nuclear plant in Virginia.

Other U.S. nuclear “renaissances” have petered out because of costs or safety concerns. But with Big Tech and government joining forces, this one is looking more likely by the day.

Other U.S. nuclear “renaissances” have petered out because of costs or safety concerns. But with Big Tech and government joining forces, this one is looking more likely by the day.

Utilities and other companies that generate electricity are increasing their orders of natural-gas turbines, lifting the fortunes of companies that sell that equipment, and companies that produce or transport natural gas. The turbines, which convert natural gas into mechanical energy, are made by the likes of GE Vernova Siemens Energy and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Natural-gas producers like EQT Expand Energy and Antero Resources also stand to gain, though less directly. An increase in electricity demand from the data centers that power artificial intelligence applications is one of the main reasons companies are turning to natural gas generators.

The oil giant posted third-quarter adjusted earnings of $2.51 a share, topping analysts’ expectations of adjusted earnings of $2.43 a share.

Exxon Mobil stock overcame a fall in profit amid oil price weakness as the oil giant’s shares kept their momentum going after earnings early Friday. The company beat earnings expectations and hiked its dividend, clearing a high bar for the shares to keep rising. Exxon also announced a fourth-quarter dividend of 99 cents per share, a 4% increase.

The larger problem is that oil and natural gas prices have been falling, and could be headed even lower.

The nuclear-power renaissance hit a speed bump after a federal commission limited how much power Amazon could use from a nuclear reactor in Pennsylvania. The decision hit the stocks of nuclear plant owners Talen Energy, Constellation Energy, and Vistra in premarket trading on Monday. Talen, which had made the deal with Amazon, was down 14%; Vistra was down 5%; and Constellation was down 13% despite also posting better-than-expected earnings on Monday.

Big tech companies need lots of electricity for their data centers, which are processing increasingly complex artificial intelligence applications.