Reactor Licensing & Regulation

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has accepted the NANO Nuclear’s KRONOS microreactor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in Illinois for review on Tuesday. The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, NANO’s partner for the reactor deployment, submitted the application on March 31. The university’s engineering department is NANO’s partner for the […]

This weekend, Saturday May 23 to be exact, marks the one-year anniversary of President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14300, which sought to overhaul the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The May 2025 executive action took the industry by storm as it called for the nuclear regulator to undergo various changes to accelerate nuclear licensing and deployment in […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has accepted the NANO Nuclear’s KRONOS microreactor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in Illinois for review on Tuesday. The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, NANO’s partner for the reactor deployment, submitted the application on March 31. The university’s engineering department is NANO’s partner for the […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has found no significant impact in the environmental assessment of Dow and X-Energy’s construction permit application for their Texas small modular reactor (SMR) plant. NRC said on Monday the environmental assessment was completed ahead of schedule. It also determined an environmental assessment was sufficient for X-Energy’s Texas project than an […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) Doug Weaver was reconfirmed by the Senate Monday to serve a full five-year term as a commissioner that will expire in June 2031. Weaver was confirmed alongside nearly 50 of President Donald Trump’s other nominees in the en bloc package, Senate Resolution 690, spearheaded by the Republicans. The nominees’ confirmation […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said on May 15 it has received a bid from Indiana to become the 41st agreement state. An agreement state enters into a deal with the NRC to assume regulatory authority over particular radioactive materials and do inspections within the respective state borders. The state also receives some license fee […]

The Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Clean Air, Climate and Nuclear Innovation and Safety will hold a hearing to discuss several draft nuclear-related legislation on May 20 in Room 406 at the Senate Dirksen Office Building in Washington, D.C. at 10 a.m. Eastern Time. \The subcommittee will look at the Build Nuclear with […]

A group of nuclear critics Monday publicly denounced the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) proposed rulemaking to review Department of Energy and Pentagon-approved reactor designs. In a joint press release, the 13 organizations, including Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS) and Beyond Nuclear, said the proposed rule violates aspects of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 […]

The House Appropriations Energy and Water Subcommittee advanced its fiscal 2027 appropriations bill that would give $1.8 billion to Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy and $892.3 million to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).  The full House Appropriations Committee released the Energy and Water appropriations bill and bill summary on Thursday, and passed it […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Amid ongoing organizational changes at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), staffing concerns take precedence as the independent regulator works to license the next generation of nuclear reactors. Over the past year, NRC has faced many changes of personnel and organizational structure, some of which was ordered by Executive Order 14300. The agency […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Amid ongoing organizational changes at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), staffing concerns take precedence as the independent regulator works to license the next generation of nuclear reactors. During a Wednesday Senate Environment and Public Works budget hearing, NRC Commissioner Bradley Crowell told the Senate that over the past 16 months, the agency […]

A group of nuclear critics Monday publicly denounced the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) proposed rulemaking to review Department of Energy and Pentagon-approved reactor designs. In a joint press release, the 13 organizations, including Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS) and Beyond Nuclear, said the proposed rule violates aspects of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 […]

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will hold a fiscal 2027 budget hearing to discuss the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s request Wednesday morning. The hearing will be held in Room 406 in the Senate Dirksen Office Building at 10 a.m. Eastern time. All five of the NRC commissioners will be testifying before the full Senate […]

AtkinsRéalis US Nuclear this week announced the appointment of Paul Larsen to its senior leadership team at the Hanford Site’s Central Plateau Cleanup Company. Central Plateau is an Amentum-led partnership with Fluor and Atkins,   Larsen has more than three decades of executive experience in radioactive waste management, nuclear construction, and high-hazard facility operation, AtkinsRéalis said […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved Framatome’s license amendment Wednesday to fabricate higher-enriched uranium at the company’s Richland, Wash.-based facility, which is adjacent to the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site.  This regulatory approval allows for Framatome to enrich uranium higher than 5% specifically at the Richland facility, which has been in operation since 1969. Manufacturing at […]

Radiant Nuclear’s application for its R-50 production facility in Oak Ridge, Tenn. has been accepted for review by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the company said this week. El Segundo, Calif.-based Radiant’s Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations Part 70 – 10 CFR Part 70 – license application review will be on an accelerated timeline […]

Radiant Nuclear’s application for its R-50 production facility in Oak Ridge, Tenn. has been accepted for review by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the company said Tuesday. El Segundo, Calif.-based Radiant’s Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations Part 70 – 10 CFR Part 70 – license application review will be on an accelerated timeline of […]

The deadline for a Genesis Mission solicitation was moved back to May 1 from April 28, according to the DOE Office of Science grants website. The solicitation from March invited interested parties from national laboratories, universities and the commercial industry to submit proposals for a $293-million requisition for application (RFA) for the Genesis Mission. Broken […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approved the second license renewals for Florida Power and Light’s St. Lucie Nuclear Plant Units 1 and 2 in Jensen Beach, Fla. on Tuesday. The subsequent license renewal extends operations through 2056 for Unit 1 and 2063 for Unit 2. NextEra Energy’s subsidiary Florida Power and Light said in a […]

In a 12-month timeline, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued a subsequent license renewal for Duke Energy’s Robinson Nuclear Plant in Hartsville, S.C. The 20-year renewal extends the Robinson plant to operate through July 2050. According to NRC’s April 23 press release, the 12-month review timeline makes this the fastest license renewal review in […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – With the renewed interest in domestic nuclear fuel reprocessing, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is working on a new rule focused on the reprocessing of spent fuel, commissioners told a House panel last week. During the House Energy and Commerce’s Energy Subcommittee’s April 22 budget hearing, Commissioner David Wright said NRC is able […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission last week announced a proposed rule for microreactor approval under 10 CFR Part 57. The regulatory framework under Part 57 aims to enable rapid deployment of microreactors and other reactor technologies with similar risk profiles, according to NRC’s April 24 press release.  Under the proposed Part 57 rule, it allows for […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approved the second license renewals for Florida Power and Light’s St. Lucie Nuclear Plant Units 1 and 2 in Jensen Beach, Fla. on Tuesday. The subsequent license renewal extends operations through 2056 for Unit 1 and 2063 for Unit 2. NextEra Energy’s subsidiary Florida Power and Light said in a […]

In a 12-month timeline, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued a subsequent license renewal for Duke Energy’s Robinson Nuclear Plant in Hartsville, S.C. The 20-year renewal extends the Robinson plant to operate through July 2050. According to NRC’s April 23 press release, the 12-month review timeline makes this the fastest license renewal review in […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – With the renewed interest in domestic nuclear fuel reprocessing, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is working on a new rule focused on the reprocessing of spent fuel, commissioners told a House panel last week. During the House Energy and Commerce’s Energy Subcommittee’s April 22 budget hearing, Commissioner David Wright said NRC is able […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission last week announced a proposed rule for microreactor approval under 10 CFR Part 57. The regulatory framework under Part 57 aims to enable rapid deployment of microreactors and other reactor technologies with similar risk profiles, according to NRC’s April 24 press release.  Under the proposed Part 57 rule, it allows for […]

Former Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) chief operating officer Mike Skaggs will become TVA’s interim president and CEO,  by the federal utility’s board of directors announced April 24. Current TVA CEO Don Moul has announced he will retire from the utility July 1. Skaggs, who worked as TVA’s chief operating officer from 2018 to 2021, will […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – During a Tuesday Senate hearing, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright offered a briefing to an Arizona Democrat on what the Department of Energy is doing to fast-track reactor deployment. In the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee fiscal 2027 budget hearing, Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) said there have been concerns about a […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission told Democrats on a House Energy and Commerce panel that NRC can remain independent despite the chance of commissioners being terminated by the White House. Wednesday’s hearing of the House Energy and Commerce’s Energy subcommittee came four months after the NRC regained a full  five-member contingent. […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued a notice in the Federal Register this week seeking public comments on NextEra Energy’s three license amendment requests for the Duane Arnold Energy Center restart. According to the Wednesday notice, comments must be submitted by May 22, while requests for hearings or petitions to intervene must be submitted by […]