Nuclear Weapons & Stockpile

Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm and other senior officials from President Joe Biden’s (D) administration toured the Palisades Training Center in Covert County, Mich., this week, the Department of Energy said. The training center, operated by Holtec International, supports the Palisades Nuclear Generating Station, which the Jupiter, Fla.-based company is trying to restart by September […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration on Tuesday finished its First Production Unit of a plutonium pit for the planned W87-1 warhead, an agency press release said. The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) verified, or “diamond stamped,” the pit, the fissile core of a warhead first stage, after it met the requirements for readiness to be […]

A U.S. Court of Federal Claims judge will hear oral arguments Oct. 10 at the request of an AtkinsRéalis-led team that the judge ruled against last month in a $45-billion legal dispute over award of the Department of Energy’s liquid waste contract at the Hanford Site in Washington state. Senior Claims Court Judge Marian Blank […]

The Department of Energy has awarded a Knoxville business a $1.6-million contract to make upgrades to a pond on former uranium enrichment plant land at the Oak Ridge Site in Tennessee, according to a recent online procurement notice. SES Constructors LLC was awarded the contract to repair or replace the P1 Pond Weir Dam and […]

Mark Rutte, NATO’s new secretary general, said in a press conference Tuesday that despite “reckless and irresponsible” rhetoric from the Kremlin, he does not see an impending nuclear threat from Russia. “We should just acknowledge the fact that clearly, there is no imminent threat of nuclear weapons being used,” Rutte said at the press conference […]

The Department of Energy did not adequately study the environmental effects of producing nuclear-weapon cores in two states, a federal judge ruled Monday in a three year-old lawsuit. But the judge in the case declined to halt construction of the Savannah River Plutonium Processing Facility at the Savannah River Site in Aiken, S.C., as requested […]

The Department of Energy’s semiautonomous National Nuclear Security Administration was set to become landlord of the Savannah River Site in South Carolina effective Tuesday, Oct. 1. The nuclear-weapons agency will take over management of the 310-square-mile federal complex near the Georgia line from DOE’s Office of Environmental Management, which cleans up shuttered nuclear-weapons production sites. […]

Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm and other senior officials from President Joe Biden’s (D) administration were to tour the Palisades Training Center in Covert County, Mich., on Monday, the Department of Energy said. The training center, operated by Holtec International, supports the Palisades Nuclear Generating Station, which the Jupiter, Fla.-based company is trying to restart […]

The Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday recommended that the Senate vote on William “Ike” White’s nomination to join the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. The approval by the committee, which received White’s nomination in May, clears the way for the full Senate Senate to send the former head of the Department of Energy’s Office […]

China’s Defense Ministry said it test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile into international waters Wednesday, media such as the Wall Street Journal and BBC reported. The ICBM was carrying a dummy warhead, WSJ said. The launch was the first in over 40 years, but according to Beijing it was “routine.” While Chinese media said it gave […]

A Department of Energy report to Congress about cleaning up excess nuclear weapons facilities will be a few months late next year, the Government Accountability Office reported Tuesday. DOE’s report will arrive by June 30 instead of March 31 as required by law, according to an attachment to a letter signed by Candice Robertson, senior […]

WASHINGTON — Construction on the Uranium Processing Facility at Y-12 National Security Complex is about 70% complete and ahead of the current schedule, the site manager told the Exchange Monitor recently. The Uranium Processing Facility (UPF) is the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) next-generation factory for nuclear-weapons secondary stages. “So the current baseline schedule, and of course, it’s […]

The Senate Armed Services Committee this week recommended that the Senate vote on William “Ike” White’s nomination to join the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. Tuesday’s approval by the committee, which received White’s nomination in May, clears the way for the full Senate Senate to send the former head of the Department of Energy’s Office […]

A Department of Energy report to Congress about cleaning up excess nuclear weapons facilities will be a few months late next year, the Government Accountability Office reported Tuesday. DOE’s report will arrive by June 30 instead of March 31 as required by law, according to an attachment to a letter signed by Candice Robertson, senior […]

A Department of Energy report to Congress about cleaning up excess nuclear weapons facilities will be a few months late next year, the Government Accountability Office reported Tuesday. DOE’s report will arrive by June 30 instead of March 31 as required by law, according to an attachment to a letter signed by Candice Robertson, senior […]

The Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday recommended that the Senate vote on William “Ike” White’s nomination to join the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. The approval by the committee, which received White’s nomination in May, clears the way for the full Senate Senate to send the former head of the Department of Energy’s Office […]

WASHINGTON — Construction on the Uranium Processing Facility at Y-12 National Security Complex is about 70% complete and ahead of the current schedule, the site manager told the Exchange Monitor recently. The Uranium Processing Facility (UPF) is the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) next-generation factory for nuclear-weapons secondary stages.  “So the current baseline schedule, and […]

Here are some events related to civilian nuclear matters that Exchange Monitor staff are tracking this week and next. September 24 – Centrus Energy Corp. Hill briefing: Restoring U.S. Uranium Enrichment. Amir Vexler, president and CEO of Centrus to attend. 2075 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington. 11:00 a.m. Eastern time to 12:00 p.m. Eastern time. […]

Senate armed services committee chair Jack Reed (D-R.I) and ranking member Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) this week said they amended the committee’s 2025 National Defense Authorization Act to include language about the next silo-based, nuclear-armed intercontinental ballistic missile. The language, part of a large managers package of uncontroversial amendments, says that it is “sense of Congress” […]

Garret Harencak plans to step down as president of the prime contractor of the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Nevada National Security Site, people familiar with his plans said this week. In August, the board of directors of Mission Support and Test Services (MSTS), the site’s Honeywell-led prime, informed site employees that Harencak, a retired Air […]

JOINT BASE ANDREWS — Scanning for threats against presidential candidates is a “24/7” operation for the nuclear emergency support team at the National Nuclear Security Administration, the agency’s counterterrorism head told the Monitor. “I find these attempts, any attack to take the life of anyone, let alone a presidential candidate or former president, inexcusable,” Wendin […]

The U.S. made “huge strides” reinvigorating its civil nuclear industry, the deputy energy secretary said Monday at the International Atomic Energy Agency general conference. “The U.S. civil nuclear industry is providing products and services to partner with countries to achieve their civil nuclear goals, while incorporating effective and efficient nuclear security, safety, and safeguards early […]

The U.S. made “huge strides” reinvigorating its civil nuclear industry, the deputy energy secretary said Monday at the International Atomic Energy Agency general conference. “The U.S. civil nuclear industry is providing products and services to partner with countries to achieve their civil nuclear goals, while incorporating effective and efficient nuclear security, safety, and safeguards early […]

WASHINGTON — After lurching back to the House floor Wednesday, the House speaker’s six-month continuing resolution again failed to rally enough support to pass the chamber. The bill went down 202-220, with 14 Republican holdouts, two Republicans voting present and three Democratic supporters. It was mostly clean for the Department of Energy, aside from an […]

WASHINGTON — After lurching back to the House floor Wednesday, the House speaker’s six-month continuing resolution again failed to rally enough support to pass the chamber. The bill went down 202-220, with 14 Republican holdouts, two Republicans voting present and three Democratic supporters. It was mostly clean for the Department of Energy, aside from an […]

The story “Thousands of gallons of tank waste ready to be solidified at Hanford, site official says” [Weapons Complex Morning Briefing, Sept. 18, 2024] should have that the Tank Side Cesium Removal (TSCR) system at the Hanford Site in Washington state has produced more than 550,000 gallons of liquid waste that is suitable for solidification. […]

Garret Harencak plans to step down as president of the prime contractor of the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Nevada National Security Site, people familiar with his plans said Tuesday. In August, the board of directors of Mission Support and Test Services (MSTS), the site’s Honeywell-led prime, informed site employees that Harencak, a retired Air Force […]

The U.S. made “huge strides” reinvigorating its civil nuclear industry, the deputy energy secretary said Monday at the International Atomic Energy Agency general conference. “The U.S. civil nuclear industry is providing products and services to partner with countries to achieve their civil nuclear goals, while incorporating effective and efficient nuclear security, safety, and safeguards early […]

Here are some events related to civilian nuclear matters that Exchange Monitor staff are tracking this week. 17: Public meeting: Savannah River Citizens Advisory Board. 1:00 p.m. Eastern time.  University of South Carolina, Close-Hipp Building, 1705 College Street, Columbia, S.C. 29208. Streaming on YouTube. 17-18: Conference: The National Cleanup Workshop program, which runs for two […]

The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is giving its 2024 John S. Foster, Jr. Medal to Franklin Miller, lab Director Kim Budil announced Monday in a press release. Miller’s career in the U.S. government spans over 31 years. He has served in roles such as the special assistant to President George W. Bush and senior director […]