Key points
- The US reportedly plans a $4 billion loan offer to Vistra
- The money would expand output at three nuclear plants
- The same plants are tied to Vistra's Meta power deal
The Trump administration plans to offer Vistra (VST) about $4 billion in loans to expand output at three of its nuclear plants, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 2. Energy Secretary Chris Wright is expected to announce the package as soon as Monday, during a visit to Vistra's Perry nuclear plant northeast of Cleveland.
The loans would fund work at two plants in Ohio and one in Pennsylvania, according to the report. Neither the Energy Department nor Vistra immediately responded to requests for comment. Vistra shares were trading near $137 before the report and closed at $140.02 on Oct. 2, up 0.2% from the previous day's $139.75 close.
The same plants are part of Vistra's Meta power deal
Vistra's Ohio nuclear plants are Perry and Davis-Besse, and its Pennsylvania plant is Beaver Valley. In January, Vistra signed 20-year agreements to sell Meta (META) 2,609 megawatts of power and capacity from its PJM nuclear fleet, according to its 8-K filing.
The Meta deal includes 433 megawatts of additional output from upgrades known as uprates, which allow existing reactors to produce more power. Perry would add 213 megawatts, Davis-Besse 80, and Beaver Valley 140. Vistra expects deliveries of the added power to begin by 2031 and reach the full amount by the end of 2034.
Bloomberg's report didn't specify how much additional output the loans would finance or whether they would fund the upgrades covered by the Meta agreement.
Expanding existing reactors can bring new capacity online sooner than building plants from scratch, which requires years of permitting and construction. That matters as data centers increase demand for electricity around the clock. President Donald Trump has set a goal of quadrupling US nuclear capacity by 2050.
The three plants supply PJM Interconnection, the grid serving about 67 million people across the Midwest and Northeast.
Loan terms haven't been disclosed
The report didn't identify the loan program or specify interest rates, repayment terms, or conditions. It also didn't say whether the expected offer would be a conditional commitment or a finalized loan.
