DOE unveils pilot program for nuclear fuel production lines

The Department of Energy has announced a new pilot program to strengthen the U.S. supply chains for nuclear fuel and support the expedition of the development of new advanced reactors.

The initiative is intended to reduce the country’s reliance on foreign sources of enriched uranium and critical materials, while allowing the private sector to invest into the U.S. nuclear resurgence, according to DOE’s Wednesday press release.

DOE has issued a Request for Application and is seeking U.S. companies to develop and operate nuclear fuel production lines exercising DOE’s authorization process. The applications are due by Aug. 15 and early submittals will be accepted.

According to the Request for Application, DOE anticipates to announce its initial selections of participants within 30 days after receiving the proposal. Any questions on the application process should be sent to DOE by July 23, according to material released in the online procurement notice. 

Applicants will be responsible for all costs associated with the construction, operation and decommissioning of an advanced nuclear fuel line, according to DOE. The applicants will also be responsible for the acquisition of all nuclear materials.

The applicants will be chosen on a set of standards, which include technological readiness, established fuel fabrication plans and financial viability.

The new initiative comes weeks after the reactor pilot program, which focuses on reactor construction authorized on governmental department sites to expedite testing of advanced reactors. In the reactor program, DOE plans for at least three advanced reactors to reach criticality by July 4, 2026.

The fuel line pilot program will support the reactor pilot program and establish a domestic nuclear fuel supply chain for testing the new advanced reactors, DOE said.

“America has the resources and the expertise to lead the world in nuclear energy development, but we need secure domestic supply chains to fuel this rapidly growing energy source and achieve a true nuclear energy renaissance,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in the press release.

Just like the advanced reactor pilot program, the DOE’s newest was created in accordance with one of President Donald Trump’s nuclear-related executive orders from May, particularly under the executive action Deploying Advanced Nuclear Reactor Technologies for National Security.