Vol. 23, No. 08 
Justice Department Says MOX Employees Accepted Gifts To Stay Silent on False Claims
-
Uranium Enrichment & Fuel Cycle
DOE Silent On Barrasso Demand for Details on Centrus Contract
The Department of Energy has yet to reply to an angry letter from Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) demanding details about the agency’s plan to help Centrus Energy Corp. build a new uranium enrichment cascade in Ohio. A Senate aide said Friday that DOE had not respond to the Jan. 23 letter, despite Barrasso’s request for […]
-
Non-Proliferation
House Committee Seeks White House Communications With Westinghouse in Saudi Nuclear Probe
Westinghouse got roped into a brewing political battle in Washington this week, when the Democratic-controlled House Oversight and Reform Committee ordered the White House to turn over records of the Donald Trump administration’s exploration of possible nuclear-power exports to Saudi Arabia. Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) directed the administration to by March 5 produce any records […]
-
Budget & Policy
DOE Site Managers Say They Won’t Shut Out DNFSB
Three Department of Energy field managers in New Mexico said Thursday that an agency order issued last year will bring little change in a good relationship with an independent federal watchdog, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB). The officials spoke at a DNFSB public hearing in Albuquerque, N.M. The four board members and about […]
-
Budget & Policy
DNFSB Considers Hiring Executive Director
As part of its efforts to put its house in order, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) intends hire a high-level staff management position, Chairman Bruce Hamilton said during a recent meeting in Washington, D.C. “We need to hire this executive secretary, or chief of staff, or whatever you want to call it,” Hamilton […]
-
Stockpile Stewardship
NNSA Says New X-Ray Cam Could Cost $1B Through 2025
It will cost about $1 billion through 2025 to build a new X-ray camera to observe subcritical plutonium experiments at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS), according to the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). Those figures come from a conceptual design for the planned Advanced Sources and Detectors (ASD) project headed by the Los Alamos National […]
-
Plutonium Pit Production
Savannah River Ramps Up Non-MOX Plutonium Downblending
The U.S. Department of Energy has ramped up downblending of a tranche of plutonium at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, with work to increase further if the mission continues at a successful pace. In November, site management and operations contractor Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) increased operations to two 12-hour shifts per day, […]
-
Innovation & Infrastructure
Enviro Groups Want Court Judgment to Stop UPF Construction
Environmental groups that sued to stop construction of the Department of Energy’s new uranium hub in Tennessee want a federal judge to cut to the chase and rule in their favor, court papers filed this week show. The anti-nuke coalition on Monday asked for a summary judgment in the nearly 3-year-old lawsuit in the U.S. […]
-
Contracts & Procurement
Leidos Reports Higher Sales, Earnings In Fourth Quarter
By Calvin Biesecker Leidos on Tuesday posted higher sales and earnings due to top-line growth across its business segments and higher operating income in its Health and Civil segments. Net income increased 65 percent to $188 million, $1.25 earnings per share (EPS), from $114 million (74 cents EPS) a year ago. The strong earnings were […]
-
Budget & Policy
First Members Announced for Energy Secretary Advisory Board
Current and former executives with connections to the nuclear industry are among the eight members announced Wednesday to the U.S. Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (SEAB). “I am pleased to announce the Secretary of @ENERGY Advisory Board members and I look forward to working with this team to enhance energy security, innovation, and the nuclear […]