Southeast Asia revisits nuclear power plans for AI data centers as Iran war disrupts

Southeast Asia revisits nuclear power plans for AI data centers as Iran war disrupts Nuclear power is getting a second look across Southeast Asia to prepare for surging demand for power for artificial intelligence-focused data centers By ANTON L. DELGADO Associated Press March 26, 2026, 1:34 AM BANGKOK, Thailand -- Nuclear power is getting a second look in Southeast Asia as countries prepare to meet surging energy demand as they vie for artificial intelligence-focused data centers . Several Southeast Asian nations are reviving mothballed nuclear plans and setting ambitious targets and nearly half of the region could, if they pursue those goals, have nuclear energy in the 2030s. Even countries without current plans have signaled their interest. Southeast Asia has never produced a single watt of nuclear energy, despite long-held atomic ambitions . But that may soon change as pressure mounts to reduce emissions that contribute to climate change , while meeting growing power needs. The Iran war is underscoring the vulnerability of Asia’s energy supplies , raising the sense of urgency about finding alternatives to oil and gas in Southeast Asia, analysts say. The surge in crude oil prices caused by the escalating conflict has raised the motivation for countries to speed up their nuclear efforts, said Alvie Asuncion-Astronomo of the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute. Vietnam and Russia advanced a nuclear power deal this week as the region's energy security concerns worsened. In South Asia, Bangladesh is racing to power up its new nuclear power plant, also backed by Russia, to address the country's energy shortfalls. Southeast Asia will account for a quarter of growth in global energy demand by 2035, according to the International Energy Agency, or IEA. That partly is because of the more than 2,000 data centers in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines, according to the think tank Ember. Many more data centers are in the pipeline. That's m...