---
title: "Constellation sold gas at $1.4 million a megawatt, then priced nuclear at $4.8 million"
description: "Constellation's filings show $309 million of trailing free cash flow against $24.7 billion of debt while the company swaps DOJ-mandated gas plants for a $4.3 billion nuclear build priced more than three times higher per megawatt."
publisher: "The Inference"
section: "Power"
published: 2026-10-20T15:05:58.563Z
modified: 2026-10-20T15:05:58.563Z
canonical: https://theinference.org/article/constellation-sold-gas-at-1-4-million-a-megawatt-then-priced-nuclear-at-4-8-million
language: en
keywords: "Nuclear, Constellation Energy, Data Centers, Energy Markets, M&A"
---

# Constellation sold gas at $1.4 million a megawatt, then priced nuclear at $4.8 million

> Constellation's filings show $309 million of trailing free cash flow against $24.7 billion of debt while the company swaps DOJ-mandated gas plants for a $4.3 billion nuclear build priced more than three times higher per megawatt.

## A gas plant went for a third of what the new nuclear costs

[Constellation Energy](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/constellation-energy) [closed the forced sale of its 606-megawatt Brazos Valley gas plant](https://www.citybiz.co/article/918908/constellation-completes-sale-of-606-megawatt-brazos-valley-energy-center-to-ls-power/) outside Houston to LS Power on October 14, 2026, and published no price [3]. [Hart Energy reported the figure](https://www.hartenergy.com/energy-market-transactions/acquisitions-and-divestitures/he-constellation-closes-brazos-valley-sale/): $860 million, about $1.4 million for each megawatt the plant can produce [4].

Six days earlier the company had agreed the other side of the swap: [more than $4.3 billion](https://theinference.org/article/google-s-4-3-billion-nuclear-deal-adds-97-mw-at-pseg-s-salem-plant-its-stock-is-still-down-12-this-year) to [add 890 megawatts of new nuclear output at 11 reactors](https://theinference.org/article/three-quarters-of-google-s-3-6-gigawatt-constellation-nuclear-deal-is-power-that-already-exists) for Google, roughly $4,800 a kilowatt, or $4.8 million a megawatt [5]. The first uprate delivers no output until 2028 [5].

## The cash to build it is not in the till

Constellation says its growth is privately funded [2]. The filings say the money is thin. Trailing revenue through June 30, 2026, was $31.27 billion with $3.47 billion of net income, but free cash flow, the cash left after operating costs and capital spending, came to $309 million [1]. The balance sheet carried $24.7 billion of debt against $697 million of cash [1].

*Chart: **Free cash flow is a tenth of reported profit** Bars comparing trailing 12-month net income, operating cash flow and free cash flow for Constellation Energy through June 30, 2026, showing free cash flow far below net income.*

*Trailing 12 months to June 30, 2026, not the quarter being reported on November 6. US dollars in billions; free cash flow is operating cash flow less capital spending. Sources: Constellation 10-Q and 10-K via Trend & Ticker. [1]*

## The contracts were written for a rule FERC just killed

[Google's 890-megawatt deal](https://www.rackline.news/story/tz5ctd) was pitched as a direct answer to PJM's proposed "bring your own capacity" rule, under which a new large load could escape curtailment only by funding capacity that is genuinely new [5]. On October 9 the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission rejected that rule, three days after the deal was announced, and suspended the backstop meant to fill PJM's 6,831-megawatt shortfall for the 2028 auction year until February 28, 2027 [5]. The contract does not depend on the rule, but the urgency that shaped its pricing has been set aside for now.

The buyers can also shop elsewhere. On October 19 [Amazon signed a 960-megawatt pact](https://theinference.org/article/amazon-scrapped-its-maryland-data-center-and-bought-the-nuclear-plant-s-power-anyway) [with utility AEP and reactor maker X-energy](https://www.utilitydive.com/news/aep-signs-advanced-960-mw-nuclear-amazon-x-energy/833341/) for small modular reactors at a former coal site in Indiana [7]. And Quad Cities, one of the six uprate sites, holds a license that expires in December 2032, six years into a 20-year contract that depends on a renewal Constellation has not yet filed [5].

*Chart: **New nuclear costs more than three times the gas plant per megawatt** Bars comparing price paid per megawatt for the Brazos Valley gas plant, Google's nuclear uprates and a floor price for Amazon's Calvert Cliffs investment, showing nuclear uprates cost more than three times the gas plant per megawatt.*

*US dollars per megawatt of capacity: Brazos Valley sale price of $860 million for 606 MW (Hart Energy); Google's $4.3 billion for 890 MW of uprates; Calvert Cliffs floor derived from more than $3 billion of disclosed investment against a roughly 190 MW uprate, shown as an estimate because the companies disclosed only a minimum. [4][5]*

## What decides it is the November 6 print

CIBC, the Canadian bank that [launched coverage of Constellation](https://trendandticker.com/markets/utilities/constellation-energy-ceg-cibc-starts-outperformer-358-target) on October 16, rates the stock an outperformer with a $358 target against a $275 quote, and points to the operating record and rising data center demand [1]. About 4.4 gigawatts of PJM gas must still clear to LS Power by December 31 [3], and the quarterly report due November 6 is the test: whether free cash flow starts closing the gap with reported profit. The number that matters in the November 6 report is free cash flow, not revenue: revenue can grow on the new contracts while the cash left after capital spending stays near $309 million [1].

## Takeaway

Constellation sold gas capacity at $1.4 million a megawatt and is buying new nuclear output at roughly $4.8 million, with trailing free cash flow of just $309 million against $24.7 billion of debt; the November 6 report's free cash flow line decides whether the math closes.

## Sources

1. [Trend & Ticker, CIBC starts Constellation Energy at outperformer, $358 target, 16 October 2026](https://trendandticker.com/markets/utilities/constellation-energy-ceg-cibc-starts-outperformer-358-target)
2. [Rackline, Google backs $4.3bn of Constellation nuclear uprates to add 890 MW, 16 October 2026](https://www.rackline.news/story/tz5ctd)
3. [citybiz, Constellation Completes Sale of 606-Megawatt Brazos Valley Energy Center to LS Power, 15 October 2026](https://www.citybiz.co/article/918908/constellation-completes-sale-of-606-megawatt-brazos-valley-energy-center-to-ls-power/)
4. [Hart Energy, Constellation Closes $860MM Texas Gas Plant Sale to LS Power, 15 October 2026](https://www.hartenergy.com/energy-market-transactions/acquisitions-and-divestitures/he-constellation-closes-brazos-valley-sale/)
5. [Inside the Datacenter, Same Reactors, More Megawatts, 15 October 2026](https://insidethedatacenter.com/articles/constellation-nuclear-uprates/)
7. [Utility Dive, AEP signs 960-MW Indiana nuclear pact with Amazon, X-energy, 19 October 2026](https://www.utilitydive.com/news/aep-signs-advanced-960-mw-nuclear-amazon-x-energy/833341/)


---

Constellation sold gas at $1.4 million a megawatt, then priced nuclear at $4.8 million — The Inference. Canonical: https://theinference.org/article/constellation-sold-gas-at-1-4-million-a-megawatt-then-priced-nuclear-at-4-8-million