WASHINGTON, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Meta said on

Tuesday it is seeking proposals from nuclear power developers to

help meet its artificial intelligence and environment goals,

becoming the latest big tech company to take interest in atomic

power amid an expected boom in power demand.

The company wants to add 1 to 4 gigawatts of new U.S.

nuclear generation capacity starting in the early 2030s, it said

in a release. A typical U.S. nuclear plant has a capacity of

about 1 gigawatt.

"At Meta, we believe nuclear energy will play a pivotal role

in the transition to a cleaner, more reliable, and diversified

electric grid," the company said in a release.

U.S. data center power use is expected to roughly triple

between 2023 and 2030 and will require about 47 gigawatts of new

generation capacity, according to Goldman Sachs estimates.

Microsoft ( MSFT ) and Constellation Energy ( CEG )

announced a deal in September to restart a unit at the Three

Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania in what would be the

first-ever restart for a data center.

The announcement follows a similar agreement in March in

which Amazon.com ( AMZN ), purchased a nuclear-powered data

center from Talen Energy ( TLN ).

Meta said it is seeking developers with expertise in

community engagement, development and permitting, and would

consider either small modular reactors, an emerging part of the

business that is not yet commercial, or larger nuclear reactors

similar to today's fleet of U.S. nuclear plants.

Meta said it will take submissions from developers that want

to take part in the request for proposals until Jan. 3, 2025.