Talen Energy shares plunge as FERC rejects nuclear power agreement with Amazon

Talen Energy’s (NASDAQ:TLN) shares tanked 14% in premarket trade on Monday, weighed down by the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) rejection of an interconnection agreement with an Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) data center.

The amended interconnection deal would have supplied more power from Talen Energy’s (TLN) Susquehanna plant to the Amazon data center at the nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania.

Members of FERC said the deal could raise power bills for the public and affect the grid’s reliability.

“Co-location arrangements of the type presented here present an array of complicated, nuanced, and multifaceted issues, which collectively could have huge ramifications for both grid reliability and consumer costs,” FERC commissioner Mark Christie said in the order.

Shares of other nuclear plays, Constellation Energy (CEG) fell 6.7%, Vistra (VST) lost 4.6%, and Public Service Enterprise Group (PEG) down 3.79% as Talen Energy’s stock plunged (TLN) 13.23% to $150.88.

Responding to the ruling, Talen Energy said it was evaluating options, with a focus on commercial solutions. “We believe this ISA amendment is just and reasonable and in the best interest of consumers.”

The proposal sought to modify an interconnection service agreement among PJM, the grid operator, the power plant owner, Susquehanna Nuclear, and the interconnected transmission owner PPL, that sought to increase the data center’s co-located load from 300 MW to 480 MW.