Nuclear Weapons & Stockpile

The House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee cleared its portion of the Fiscal Year 2015 National Defense Authorization Act in a tidy 8 minutes and 45 seconds yesterday, but not without some grumbling from several Democrats on the panel. Rep. John Garamendi (D-Calif.) was the lone “no” vote against the markup as he questioned why […]

New National Nuclear Security Administration chief Frank Klotz will take his first tour of the weapons complex as the agency’s administrator next week, making stops at the Nevada National Security Site, the agency’s Albuquerque Complex, Sandia National Laboratories, and Los Alamos National Laboratory, NNSA spokesman Josh McConaha said yesterday. At Sandia, Klotz will meet with […]

The United States had 4,804 nuclear weapons in its active deployed stockpile as of September of last year, having trimmed 309 weapons from the last time it declassified the size of its nuclear arsenal in 2010. Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Rose Gottemoeller made the announcement during remarks at the […]

Calling the refurbishment of the air-launched cruise missile (ALCM) a “priority,” Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.) was equally critical of the Administration’s decision this year to delay the replacement of the weapon in a speech yesterday at the Reserve Officers Association. “The Air Force will continue to extend the life of the existing ALCM, but eventually […]

Republicans on the House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee are objecting to Administration plans to delay the refurbishment of the cruise missile warhead, and they are moving to authorize additional funding to accelerate the program in Fiscal Year 2015. The subcommittee released its portion of the FY 2015 National Defense Authorization Act yesterday, and while the […]

The United States will update the size of its nuclear stockpile at the Preparatory Committee meeting for the 2015 Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty Review Conference, and the announcement is expected to come today when Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Rose Gottemoeller provides opening remarks for the U.S. at the New York […]

Three key players in the future modernization of the Y-12 National Security Complex—Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz, Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory Director Thom Mason—gathered Friday at the University of Tennessee, where Moniz was delivering a lecture on energy and environment. But, in a press conference preceding the Moniz lecture, the three […]

Bechtel-led Consolidated Nuclear Security has replaced Dan Glenn as the operations manager of the Pantex Plant with another former Babcock & Wilcox official, revealing yesterday that Michelle Reichert would head up operations at Pantex under the new contract. Reichert most recently served as the deputy general manager for incumbent Pantex Plant contractor B&W Pantex, but […]

A series of recent nuclear safety issues at the Pantex Plant are drawing concern from the Department of Energy’s Office of Health, Safety and Security. The HSS Office of Enforcement and Oversight recently issued an enforcement letter to contractor B&W Pantex, and while HSS declined to fine the contractor, it urged B&W Pantex to review […]

The collective bargaining agreement between the Atomic Trades and Labor Council and B&W Y-12 is expected to be extended for one year after the union announced a “tentative” agreement on the extension yesterday. The ATLC agreement at Y-12 runs out June 22, and with transition ongoing to new contractor Consolidated Nuclear Security, union officials wanted […]

Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Frank Klotz, sworn in as the head of the National Nuclear Security Administration late last week, will be making his first visit to Capitol Hill in his new job today and tomorrow. Klotz will meet with House and Senate authorizers and appropriators—likely mostly staff since Congress remains out until next […]

The Red Team that analyzed alternatives to the Uranium Processing Facility planned for the Y-12 National Security Complex also weighed in on management of the multi-billion-dollar facility, and NS&D Monitor has learned that the team recommended a major management change for the project. The recommendations of the team, led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory Director […]

Technology planned for the Uranium Processing Facility continues to remain a major question mark for the project, according to a Government Accountability Office report released Friday that reveals a handful of new technology concerns. The report is part of the GAO’s continuing work on UPF and technology planned for the facility. According to the report, […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration has directed the contractors that run Y-12 and Pantex to organize a voluntary layoff program to reduce the size of the workforce at each site as part of a staffing plan outlined by new Y-12/Pantex contractor Consolidated Nuclear Security. Details of the voluntary separation program (VSP) have not been released, […]

Acting National Nuclear Security Administration chief Bruce Held confirmed that he received the Red Team’s alternative-to-UPF report yesterday, but it’s not clear when—or if—the partially classified report will be released or how the NNSA plans to proceed with the findings. Oak Ridge National Laboratory Director Thom Mason, who headed the Red Team review of Y-12’s […]

It’s been a week since the Senate confirmed retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Frank Klotz to be Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, but it’s not clear when he will officially assume his new role. Bruce Held is continuing to serve as the acting NNSA chief while Klotz undergoes an administrative review, according to […]

The Red Team examining alternatives to the Uranium Processing Facility hasn’t even delivered its report, but Tennessee Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander wants the approach used on other Department of Energy projects. “Maybe it will turn out to be something we want. But I like the process,” Alexander said during an exchange with Energy Secretary Ernest […]

The Congressionally appointed advisory panel on National Nuclear Security Administration governance won’t wrap up its final report until later this summer, but the chairmen of the panel told the Senate Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee yesterday they will have the “essence of the report” completed by Memorial Day. The panel’s recommendations are likely to come […]

As the National Nuclear Security Administration pivots toward a smaller and cheaper way of maintaining its uranium processing capabilities at the Y-12 National Security Complex, acting NNSA chief Bruce Held acknowledged yesterday that about half of the $1.2 billion that has been spent on the Uranium Processing Facility has been wasted. Appearing before the House […]

More than seven months after Frank Klotz was nominated to head up the National Nuclear Security Administration, the Senate finally confirmed the retired lieutenant general, clearing him by a voice vote late yesterday afternoon. Klotz’s confirmation ends the NNSA’s 15-month gap without a permanent administrator; Neile Miller, Michael Lempke and Bruce Held have led the […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration said yesterday that a project to upgrade the security infrastructure at the Y-12 National Security Complex was completed ahead of schedule and approximately $20 million less than its initial $72 million budget. The Security Improvements Project (SIP), which the NNSA said cost $51.8 million, replaced existing alarm stations and access […]

New Y-12/Pantex contractor Consolidated Nuclear Security will hold several informational meetings later this month with employees at both sites. In a message to employees, CNS President Jim Haynes said informational meetings at Y-12 will be held April 15 and 16 from 4:45-6:30 p.m. in the New Hope Center, while Pantex meetings are scheduled for 4:30 […]

Over the last six months, the United States has reduced the size of its strategic deployed nuclear stockpile by 103 warheads, while Russia has increased the size of its stockpile, according to the latest New START Treaty data released by the State Department. The April 1 declaration reveals that the U.S. had 1,585 warheads under […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration hasn’t adequately maintained design information for the warheads and nuclear components in its nuclear stockpile, according to a Department of Energy Inspector General report that suggests the missing information raises questions about the credibility of the nation’s nuclear deterrent. “CM [Configuration management] information is the foundation upon which the NNSA […]

Bechtel-led Consolidated Nuclear Security unveiled its organizational structure yesterday and shed more light on its executive management team according to a message to employees from President Jim Haynes. The organization will be structured with Pantex and Y-12 reporting up to Haynes and Chief Operating Officer Jim Allen, with support organizations known as Mission Support; Mission […]

New Y-12/Pantex contractor Consolidated Nuclear Security can earn up to $39.9 million in performance fee under its new contract, plus tens of millions of dollars more as its share of the cost savings it plans to achieve as the new manager of the sites, according to the company’s new contract. The 235-page document released yesterday […]

The Congressionally appointed panel on National Nuclear Security Administration governance hasn’t come up with any recommendations yet, but the co-chairman of the committee made it clear yesterday at a House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee hearing that the current governance structure for the agency is not working. The panel’s co-chairmen, former Lockheed Martin CEO Norm […]

Consolidated Nuclear Security, the new Y-12/Pantex management and operating contractor, plans to extend job offers to existing employees starting April 15, CNS President Jim Haynes said in a message to employees yesterday. With the Bechtel-led contractor moving into its fourth week of transition, Haynes outlined a series of coming milestones in addition to the schedule […]

Monica Regalbuto may have a long wait to be confirmed by the Senate as the Department of Energy’s Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management, but she’s filling part of the time on the Red Team examining alternatives to the Uranium Processing Facility planned for the Y-12 National Security Complex. NS&D Monitor has learned that Regalbuto has […]

Budgetary pressure and technical considerations are likely to doom the Obama Administration’s “3+2” strategy for modernizing the nation’s nuclear stockpile, former Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Director Parney Albright said yesterday. Speaking at George Washington University, Albright said he supported the strategy, which would modernize and consolidate the nation’s nuclear stockpile through three interoperable warheads, a […]