# Is the Google-Fortum Loviisa PPA the Strongest Signal Yet That Big Tech Is Betting on Existing Nuclear Fleet Life Extension?

Google has signed a multidecade nuclear power purchase agreement with Finnish utility Fortum, securing power from the Loviisa plant through 2050 — and committing to off-take 50 percent of the plant's operating capacity between 2030 and 2049. The deal, announced Wednesday, September 11, 2026, anchors a €1 billion (approximately $1.16 billion) life-extension investment program Fortum has underway at Loviisa, and validates Finland's 2023 decision to extend the plant's operating license to 2050. Power deliveries to Google's Finnish data center infrastructure begin in 2028. Loviisa currently operates two pressurized water reactors with a combined capacity of 1,014 MWe, and a 38-MW uprate is already scheduled. The PPA is expected to enable an additional 10 MW of new capacity on top of that uprate. For the broader nuclear industry, this deal illustrates a pattern accelerating across the sector: hyperscalers are increasingly turning to existing fleet life extension as a faster, lower-risk path to firm, carbon-free [baseload power](https://smrintel.com/glossary/baseload) than waiting for first-of-a-kind SMR deployments.

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## What the PPA Actually Covers

The agreement locks in Google as an off-taker for Loviisa's output through 2050, with the core commercial terms running from 2030 to 2049, during which Google holds 50 percent of the plant's operating capacity. Power supply to Google's data center infrastructure in Finland — anchored at its Hamina facility — begins in 2028.

The deal is explicitly structured to provide the revenue certainty Loviisa needs to sustain operations into 2050. Fortum's life-extension investment program, expected to reach €1 billion by 2050, is already in motion. A major turbine modernization project is slated for outages in 2026 and 2028, timed to maintain reliability as the plant enters its extended operational period.

Aris Karcanias, Google's director of energy for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, was direct about the strategic rationale: "By supporting the lifetime extension of the Loviisa plant, which is located close to our data center in Hamina where we first put down our roots in Finland, we're doing our part to keep a critical energy source on the grid, mitigating system impacts from meaningful capacity going off line in the south of the country."

That framing — preventing capacity loss rather than simply procuring clean energy — is a more sophisticated argument than most corporate nuclear announcements offer. It positions Google as a grid stability actor, not merely a green-credentials buyer.

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## The 38-MW Uprate and an Additional 10 MW

Loviisa was already scheduled for a 38-MW power uprate before this deal was announced. The PPA is now expected to enable a further 10 MW of new capacity at the plant. Combined, that represents meaningful incremental output from a plant that currently runs two PWRs at 1,014 MWe combined — without the permitting timelines, supply chain constraints, or [FOAK](https://smrintel.com/glossary/foak) execution risk associated with new build.

For utility executives and energy VCs watching construction cost trajectories on new SMR projects, this arithmetic is worth sitting with. Life extension capital at an operating plant, backstopped by a long-term PPA with an investment-grade tech counterparty, is structurally a different risk profile than equity in a first commercial SMR unit.

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## Fortum's Swedish Ambitions: NuCore Energi Files for State Aid

The Loviisa PPA announcement arrives alongside a separate Fortum disclosure: its subsidiary NuCore Energi submitted a state aid application with the Swedish government in late August, declaring intentions for a new nuclear power project in Oskarshamn Municipality. The proposed project would generate between 1,200 MWe and 3,400 MWe, according to the announcement — a range that spans large conventional reactor territory as well as potential multi-unit configurations.

NuCore Energi was formed specifically to comply with Sweden's state aid eligibility requirements, which restrict support to companies focused solely on new reactor deployment. Fortum officials were clear that neither Fortum nor NuCore has reached an investment decision on the Swedish project. The state aid application is an expression of intent, not a construction commitment.

Still, the combination of a revenue-secured life-extension play at Loviisa and an early-stage new build positioning in Sweden signals that Fortum is pursuing a two-track nuclear strategy across the Nordic region: extract maximum value from operating assets while optioning into the next build cycle.

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## Context: Finland's Nuclear Position and the Google Data Center Angle

Finland's nuclear fleet is among the most significant in Europe on a per-capita basis. Loviisa's 1,014 MWe of PWR capacity is separate from Olkiluoto, operated by Teollisuuden Voima Oyj, which runs three reactors at a combined 3,355 MWe — including the European Pressurized Reactor unit that came online in recent years after a protracted construction saga.

Google's PPA is part of a broader Finnish energy portfolio the company is assembling. The announcement accompanies plans for two onshore wind projects and a battery storage system in the country. That combination — firm nuclear baseload underwritten by a long-term PPA, supplemented by variable renewables and storage — is structurally similar to the portfolio approach hyperscalers are building in the U.S., where Google is also involved in the restart of the Duane Arnold plant in Iowa through a PPA with NextEra Energy.

The parallel is instructive. In Iowa, NextEra recently secured a DOE loan of up to $1.9 billion for the Duane Arnold restart. In Finland, the mechanism is private PPA revenue certainty rather than sovereign credit support — but the underlying logic is identical: long-term off-take commitments from creditworthy counterparties as the financial foundation for extended nuclear operations.

Fortum CEO Markus Rauramo framed the deal in terms of systemic opportunity: "Finland has a unique opportunity to turn its decarbonized, reliable electricity system and robust industrial infrastructure into a foundation for the next wave of sustainable industrial growth."

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## What This Means for the Broader Industry

The Google-Fortum deal is the clearest European example yet of the template that has been emerging in the U.S.: tech-sector demand for firm, 24/7 carbon-free power is becoming the commercial mechanism that justifies nuclear life extension capital expenditure that utilities could not otherwise underwrite in volatile spot markets.

For nuclear developers and utilities, the deal underscores several points:

- Long-duration PPAs with hyperscalers can substitute for regulated rate recovery in markets where merchant nuclear faces price risk.
- Life extension at existing plants — with known geology, existing grid connections, trained workforces, and licensing precedent — offers a faster path to contracted MWe than new build.
- The 50 percent capacity share structure is notable: Google is not buying RECs or taking a symbolic slice. It is underwriting half of a plant's commercial existence for two decades.

The MOU component, which commits both parties to explore additional energy supply including "potential new nuclear opportunities at Loviisa," leaves open the possibility of a small modular reactor or uprate project at the existing site — a path that would benefit from Loviisa's existing infrastructure, grid interconnection, and community acceptance.

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## Key Takeaways

- **Google will off-take 50 percent of Loviisa's operating capacity from 2030 to 2049**, with power deliveries to Finnish data center infrastructure beginning in 2028.
- **Fortum's Loviisa life-extension investment program is expected to reach €1 billion by 2050**, with turbine modernization outages already scheduled for 2026 and 2028.
- **A 38-MW uprate is already scheduled**; the PPA is expected to enable an additional 10 MW of new capacity.
- **Loviisa's two PWRs currently produce 1,014 MWe combined** — separate from Olkiluoto's 3,355 MWe fleet.
- **Fortum subsidiary NuCore Energi filed a Swedish state aid application in late August** for a potential 1,200–3,400 MWe new build project in Oskarshamn Municipality. No investment decision has been made.
- **The deal mirrors Google's U.S. nuclear strategy**, including a PPA for the Duane Arnold restart in Iowa with NextEra Energy.
- **An MOU between Google and Fortum** will explore additional supply options including potential new nuclear opportunities at Loviisa.

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## Frequently Asked Questions

**What is the Google-Fortum Loviisa nuclear PPA?**
Google and Finnish utility Fortum signed a multidecade power purchase agreement that will supply Google's Finnish data center infrastructure with nuclear power from the Loviisa plant through 2050. Google will hold 50 percent of Loviisa's operating capacity between 2030 and 2049, with deliveries beginning in 2028.

**How much is Fortum investing in Loviisa life extension?**
According to Fortum, the life-extension investment program is expected to reach €1 billion (approximately $1.16 billion) by 2050. Work already underway includes a turbine modernization project scheduled during outages in 2026 and 2028.

**What is the current capacity of the Loviisa plant?**
Loviisa operates two pressurized water reactors with a combined operating capacity of 1,014 MWe. A 38-MW uprate is already scheduled, and the PPA is expected to enable an additional 10 MW of new capacity.

**What is NuCore Energi and what is Fortum planning in Sweden?**
NuCore Energi is a Fortum subsidiary formed to comply with Swedish state aid eligibility requirements for new nuclear projects. In late August 2026, NuCore filed an application with the Swedish government for a potential new nuclear project in Oskarshamn Municipality, targeting between 1,200 MWe and 3,400 MWe. No investment decision has been made.

**Why are hyperscalers like Google signing nuclear PPAs instead of waiting for SMRs?**
Existing fleet life extension offers contracted MWe faster than first-of-a-kind SMR construction, with lower execution risk and known regulatory pathways. Long-term PPAs provide the revenue certainty that allows utilities to underwrite capital-intensive life-extension programs in volatile electricity markets — giving tech companies firm, 24/7 carbon-free power at scale without the construction timeline risk of new build.