Oklo Inc. (OKLO) stock jumped Friday morning after the company revealed a strategic partnership with Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) that highlights just how serious tech giants are getting about securing reliable, clean power for their data center ambitions.

The Nuclear Power Campus Plan

The deal centers on Oklo's plan to build a 1.2-gigawatt power campus in Pike County, Ohio, specifically designed to supply electricity to Meta's regional data center operations. That's a substantial amount of power—enough to illustrate how energy-intensive modern AI infrastructure has become.

The project will occupy a 206-acre site in Pike County that previously belonged to the Department of Energy and is now owned by Oklo. Pre-construction work and site studies are slated to begin in 2026, with the first phase of the facility expected to start generating power by 2030. From there, the campus will expand in stages until it reaches its full 1.2-gigawatt capacity by 2034.

How the Funding Works

Here's where the arrangement gets interesting. Under the agreement, Meta can prepay for electricity and provide funding to help advance Oklo's Aurora powerhouse project. Oklo plans to use this funding to acquire nuclear fuel and move forward with Phase 1 of the Pike County development.

It's essentially a model where large energy consumers can fund their own generation capacity while simultaneously adding clean power to the grid through private investment. Meta's commercial support is structured to help Oklo develop power infrastructure tailored to future data center needs, which should also contribute to a more reliable electricity grid for other Ohio customers.

Urvi Parekh, head of global energy at Meta, said, "Our agreement with Oklo enables the development of 1.2 gigawatts of nuclear energy in Southern Ohio, supporting Meta's operations in the region, including our AI supercluster in New Albany. This project will create jobs, spur local innovation, and advance American leadership in energy technology."

Price Action: Oklo shares were up 18.24% at $115.40 during premarket trading on Friday.