Advanced Nuclear & SMRs

The premature closure of nuclear power plants is a detriment to U.S. climate change goals, former assistant energy secretary Susan Tierney said during a Democratic Party event on Friday in Phoenix. Tierney, who was set to become deputy energy secretary under President Barack Obama in 2009 before she withdrew her candidacy, appeared during a regional Democratic National Convention […]

U.S. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker on April 1 signed legislation lifting the state’s 33-year ban on building new nuclear power plants. The state Senate, in a 23-9 vote, approved Rep. Kevin Petersen’s (R-Waupaca) legislation in December. Wisconsin previously prohibited construction of new plants on the basis that the federal government has not established a capable national […]

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker on Friday signed legislation lifting the state’s 33-year ban on building new nuclear power plants. The state Senate, in a 23-9 vote, approved Rep. Kevin Petersen’s (R-Waupaca) legislation in December. Wisconsin previously prohibited construction of new plants on the basis that the federal government has not established a capable national nuclear waste storage […]

U.S. SHINE Medical Technologies, which recently won federal approval to build a medical isotope facility in Wisconsin, announced this week the successful operation of an accelerator-based neutron generator for 132 consecutive hours with greater than 97 percent uptime. The test run, which was completed March 14-19 in Wisconsin, is an industry first for extended operation […]

SHINE Medical Technologies, which recently won federal approval to build a medical isotope facility in Wisconsin, announced this week the successful operation of an accelerator-based neutron generator for 132 consecutive hours with greater than 97 percent uptime. The test run, which was completed March 14-19 in Wisconsin, is an industry first for extended operation of a […]

Alissa Tabirian NS&D Monitor 1/22/2016 A developer of small modular reactor technology announced this week that its reactors could feasibly be powered by mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel. NuScale Power said a study commissioned by the U.K. National Nuclear Laboratory concluded that the company’s small modular reactor technology can effectively be used for plutonium disposition “with minimal […]

A developer of small modular reactor technology announced yesterday that its reactors could feasibly be powered by mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel. NuScale Power said a study commissioned by the U.K. National Nuclear Laboratory concluded that the company’s small modular reactor technology can effectively be used for plutonium disposition “with minimal effect on the reactor’s design and […]

Jeremy L. Dillon RW Monitor 9/25/2015 TerraPower and the China National Nuclear Corp. have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to jointly complete the traveling wave reactor (TWR) design and commercialize the technology, the company announced this week.  The MOU, according to the Washington-based nuclear reactor design specialist, “will speed technology development, promote clean energy […]

TerraPower and the China National Nuclear Corp. have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to jointly complete the traveling wave reactor (TWR) design and commercialize the technology, the company announced yesterday.  The MOU, according to the Washington-based nuclear reactor design specialist, “will speed technology development, promote clean energy growth, and enable global economic growth in […]

Staff Reports RW Monitor 1/23/2015 Canadian-based Terrestrial Energy announced this week that it was entering into a relationship/collaboration with Oak Ridge National laboratory for the possible development of a new line of small molten salt reactors. Nuclear advocates who’ve long pushed for a revival of the molten salt technology, developed at ORNL decades ago, greeted […]

Jeremy L. Dillon RW Monitor 1/16/2015 John Kotek will officially serve as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy, according to an internal memo from Assistant Secretary Pete Lyons released this week. As first reported by RW Monitor last week, Kotek, the former staff director for the Blue Ribbon […]

Jeremy L. Dillon RW Monitor 10/10/2014 SHINE Medical Technologies has entered into a $125 million term sheet with Deerfield Management Company to provide debt and equity financing for its production of molybdenum-99, the company announced this week. SHINE is one of several companies trying to get through the regulatory hurdles to begin the production of […]

RW Monitor 10/3/2014 IN DOE The Department of Energy this week issued a draft solicitation for up to $12.6 billion in loan guarantees for advanced nuclear energy projects. The four key areas of interest include advanced nuclear reactors, small modular reactors, upgrades at existing facilities, and $2 billion for front-end nuclear projects such as uranium […]

The Department of Energy yesterday issued a draft solicitation for up to $12.6 billion in loan guarantees for advanced nuclear energy projects. The four key areas of interest include advanced nuclear reactors, small modular reactors, upgrades at existing facilities, and $2 billion for front-end nuclear projects such as uranium enrichment and conversion plants. “For the […]

Sandia Official to Serve as Director of National Ignition Facility NS&D Monitor 9/19/2014 Sandia National Laboratories official Mark Hermann will take over as the new director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s National Ignition Facility Oct. 6, Principal Associate Director for NIF and Photon Science Jeff Wisoff said in a Sept. 16 memo obtained by NS&D […]

Spanish utility Iberdrola has joined GE Hitachi through a Memorandum of Understanding to work together on the deployment of GE’s PRISM technology, the company announced yesterday. The technology is currently being considered as a solution to the United Kingdom’s plutonium stockpile. It would re-process the plutonium to generate electricity from the used fuel. According to […]

Fluor-backed NuScale Power and the Department of Energy yesterday announced they have  finalized an agreement to provide up to $217 million in DOE funding for design and licensing of a small, modular reactor design, and are looking to potentially site the first reactor at Idaho National Laboratory. DOE announced in December that it had selected […]

Citing a lack of investors, B&W announced yesterday that it will be slowing down the development of its mPower Small Modular Reactor Program that is receiving support from the Department of Energy. Also yesterday mPower, Inc., CEO Chris Mowry, left B&W and was replaced by mPower COO for Generation William Fox. Nearly $100 million in […]

B&W announced a partnership with TerraPower to provide design and support services for TerraPower’s traveling wave reactor (TWR) design, according to a release issued yesterday. The two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding that said B&W will provide support services that may include “design and fabrication of engineered components; fuel fabrication process development, prototype fabrication, […]

Due to current market conditions, Westinghouse is backing off plans to develop a small modular reactor and will focus more on other reactor projects, according to reports. The vendor now plans to focus staff resources more on the AP1000, the full-size reactor now under construction at several sites, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “The problem […]

Jeremy L. Dillon RW Monitor 2/21/2014 B&W announced this week a new a partnership with TerraPower to provide design and support services for TerraPower’s traveling wave reactor (TWR) design. The two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding that said B&W will provide support services that may include “design and fabrication of engineered components; fuel fabrication […]

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has cancelled an ambitious laser fusion energy program aimed at marketing and commercializing National Ignition Facility technology in the face of Congressional scrutiny and questions about the utility of the program

Due to current market conditions, Westinghouse is backing off plans to develop a small modular reactor and will focus more on other reactor projects, according to reports. The vendor now plans to focus staff resources more on the AP1000, the full-size reactor now under construction at several sites, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “The problem […]

B&W announced a partnership with TerraPower to provide design and support services for TerraPower’s traveling wave reactor (TWR) design, according to a release issued yesterday. The two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding that said B&W will provide support services that may include “design and fabrication of engineered components; fuel fabrication process development, prototype fabrication, […]

The Department of Energy and China have entered into a proposed agreement that would allow the exchange and joint development of a Traveling Wave Reactor design, according to a notice in the Federal Register yesterday. The agreement, advocated by the Chinese government and the industry, would allow U.S. companies to engage the Chinese government agencies […]

Generation mPower, LLC, the B&W and Bechtel effort to design, license  and build a small modular reactor, has named Bill Fox Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Fox comes from CB&I, where he most recently served as project director for the V.C. Summer new reactor project in South Carolina. “Bill brings strong nuclear engineering, […]

Former National Ignition Facility Director Ed Moses will head up an effort to explore the uses for ignition, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Director Parney Albright said yesterday. Moses was shifted out of his role as the NIF director earlier this year, and had served as the Principal Associate Director for NIF and Photon Science (NIF&PS) […]

Babcock & Wilcox announced yesterday that it is looking to sell off a majority stake in its mPower small modular reactor program to outside investors. In a call with investors, B&W President and CEO James Ferland said additional investment is needed in mPower to “move the technology forward with speed and provide the financial resources […]

B&W announced yesterday that it has received the latest allocation of Department of Energy funds to support its mPower small modular reactor. The $20.5 million allocation, provided through a cooperative agreement DOE finalized with B&W this spring, comes on top of an initial allocation of $79 million. “With this most recent allocation … the full […]

After an announcement of an additional funding opportunity for small, modular reactor vendors by the Department of Energy earlier this week, NuScale Power said it is planning to compete for the $226 million that will be offered over a five-year period for up to several vendors. That funding would go towards a cost-share program that […]