Japan may need to replace almost a sixth of its aging fleet of nuclear reactors or risk missing its 2040 energy targets.

The country would need to substitute about 5.5 gigawatts of generation to meet a target of having atomic energy contribute a fifth of the power mix by fiscal 2040, the Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan, an industry organization, said in a document used in a trade ministry panel meeting on Wednesday. The nation currently has 33 operable reactors, according to the World Nuclear Association.

Governments and companies globally have been eyeing nuclear power as a way to meet rising demand for clean and stable electricity, boosted by artificial intelligence and data center use. Even Japan, which saw support for the energy source evaporate after the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear meltdown in 2011, has shifted its position and is looking to readopt the technology in order to meet climate, industrial and economic goals.

While existing reactors should be used to their fullest, several will hit 60 years of operation from the 2040s, the document said. That was the maximum allowed lifespan for atomic plants before a law came into effect earlier this year that allows them to operate for longer.

Regional utility Kansai Electric Power said in July that it would explore options to build a new reactor, the first since 2011.