Publications: ExchangeMonitor Morning Briefing

Westinghouse said it has begun a six-month front-end and engineering design study for its AP1000 reactor technology at Jaslovské Bohunice nuclear plant in Slovakia.  The study is funded by the Department of State’s Foundational Infrastructure for Responsible Use of Small Modular Reactor Technology Program, according to Westinghouse’s Oct. 28 press release. The company said the […]

Bethesda, Md. uranium broker Centrus Energy has manufactured its first centrifuge and is shipping it to its uranium enrichment facility in Piketon, Ohio, the company said Oct. 29. The centrifuge was made at Centrus’ Oak Ridge, Tenn. facility. This centrifuge was completed as a part of the company’s multibillion dollar expansion of its uranium enrichment […]

The Department of Energy’s nuclear cleanup branch has contracted a small business out of Tempe, Ariz., for the Infrastructure Support Services contract at the Portsmouth Site at Piketon, Ohio. In a Friday Oct. 30 news release, DOE’s Office of Environmental Management said the new potential five-year contract was being awarded to AIS Technical Services. The […]

Here are events related to nuclear matters that Exchange Monitor staff are tracking:  NOVEMBER: 02: Earnings call: BWX Technologies will hold its quarterly earnings call start at 5 p.m. Eastern Time.  03: Election day, mid-terms.  03: Earnings call: Leidos will hold its quarterly earnings call starting at 8 a.m. Eastern.  05: Earnings call: AtkinsRéalis Group […]

Sandia National Laboratories has been selected for $3.38 million in Department of Energy funding to develop analytical tools aimed at helping advance the safe, secure production of nuclear fuels for next-generation reactors. The funding is part of DOE’s nearly $50 million High-Performance Optimized Recycled Nuclear Isotopes for Gen IV Reactors, or HORNIG, program, administered by […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) is scheduled to conduct low-altitude helicopter flights Nov. 3 to Nov. 5 over South Florida, the agency said in an email last week. The agency’s Aerial Measuring System, radiation-sensing technology that flies on a Leonardo AW-139 helicopter at low levels, would measure any potential background radiation ahead of the […]

Three large Lithium-Ion batteries from the Department of Energy’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), near Carlsbad, N.M., are being shipped to Pittsburgh where government researchers will study potential mine-fire risks. DOE and WIPP prime Salado Isolation Mining Contractors have reached an Inter-Agency Agreement with the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). The batteries […]

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The National Nuclear Security Administration expects to release a draft request for quotations (RFQ) for its Technical and Engineering Program Support 4 contract, or TEST 4, in January 2027, with the agency targeting contract performance beginning later that year. B.J. Quigley, NNSA’s senior procurement executive, said at the Energy Technology and Environmental […]

Parsons Corp. Chief Financial Officer Matt Ofilos will resign Nov. 6 to pursue another professional opportunity, with former CFO George Ball returning on an interim basis as the company searches for a permanent successor. Ofilos’ resignation is not related to any disagreement with Parsons over the company’s operations, policies or practices, the company said Oct. […]

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.) told federal contractors and industry members here that he still expects the Energy and Water Development bill for fiscal 2027 to pass before Dec. 11. Fleischmann, who wrote the most recent energy and water appropriations bill, doubled down on his predicted passage of the bill Wednesday after he […]

KNOXVILLE, TENN. — The Department of Energy’s Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management (EM) Tim Walsh said here Wednesday the nuclear cleanup branch is drawing closer to a deal with New Mexico over state permit modifications for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, N.M. “So, we completed our mediation and it’s just with our […]

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – With one year under his belt as Department of Energy Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management (EM), Tim Walsh remains bullish about tapping remediated land at government nuclear installations for redevelopment. . Walsh, joined by the principal deputy assistant secretary, or EM-2, Joel Bradburne, kicked off the Energy Technology and Environmental Business Association’s […]

The tank waste pretreatment system at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state set a record in September by removing cesium from 222,000 gallons of low-level liquid radioactive waste, DOE announced Tuesday.. The Tank-Side Cesium-Removal (TSCR) system started operation in 2022. TSCR is set up to filter out cesium and undissolved solids from […]

PanTeXas Deterrence LLC (PXD), the management and operating contractor for the Pantex Plant, has selected Emily Hunt as its first chief technology officer, creating a new executive role focused on modernization and research. Hunt will serve as Pantex’s lead scientist and oversee the plant’s long-term technology and innovation strategy, including efforts to expand research and […]

Constellation Energy was issued a conditional loan by the Department of Energy of up to $5 billion dollars to increase its operating reactor fleet capacity by 1,100 megawatts. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and DOE’s Energy Dominance Financing Director Gregory Beard made the announcement at Constellation’s Byron Clean Energy Center in Ogle County, Ill. Tuesday […]

The Department of Energy’s prime contractor for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, N.M., has hired Patrick Hefflinger as its new head of communications. Bechtel-led Salado Isolation Mining Contractors announced Hefflinger’s appointment in a Monday news release. Hefflinger, who has more than 15 years in the field, comes to WIPP after being a […]

The Pentagon said Monday it picked the USS Colorado (SSN-788) to be the first U.S. Navy Virginia-class attack submarine assigned to Submarine Rotation Force West (SRF-West), marking the next step in the AUKUS submarine process, starting in late 2027. SRF-West aims to help Australia prepare to ultimately operate, maintain and support its own nuclear-powered and […]

The Department of Energy’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, N.M., will hold its next public meeting on Wednesday Nov. 4. The New Mexico Environment Department has proposed modifying WIPP’s state operating permit for the second time in four years. The state and DOE have been in talks about the issue. WIPP, managed for […]

BWX Technologies’ (BWXT) subsidiary, BWXT Advanced Fuels, will supply tri-structural – or TRISO – fuel to Antares Nuclear under a new multi-year agreement, the companies said Tuesday. Under this contract, BWXT will provide an initial supply of one metric ton of uranium of TRISO fuel to Antares. If Antares reactor deployment continues to grow, then […]

Fairbanks Morse Defense last week broke ground on a $60 million manufacturing facility that will increase production on Virginia-class naval propulsion components funded in part from international AUKUS funds. The company on Oct. 20 broke ground on the third Center of Excellence at the existing Bird-Johnson Propeller Company facility in Pascagoula, Miss., which it said […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued the final environmental impact statement for Global Laser Enrichment’s (GLE) proposed laser enrichment facility located near the Department of Energy’s Paducah Site in Kentucky. According to GLE’s Oct. 23 press release, NRC staff recommended issuing a license to construct and operate the facility. This issuance comes months after NRC published […]

While it missed the start of the 2027 fiscal year, the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management is still working on appointing a new slate of members to the Hanford Advisory Board (HAB) for the Hanford Site in Richland, Wash. “The membership package for DOE’s Hanford Advisory Board continues to make its way through […]

The Department of Energy’s heads of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and Office of Environmental Management will headline the Energy Technology and Environmental Business Association (ETEBA) annual Business Opportunities and Technical Conference at the Knoxville Convention Center in Knoxville, Tenn. this week. The annual conference will feature NNSA administrator Brandon Williams and Office of […]

Fluor Marine Propulsion has received a $2.4 billion contract modification for work supporting the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program at the Naval Nuclear Laboratory, according to the Defense Department. The $2.409 billion cost-plus-fixed-fee modification, awarded Sept. 24 and announced by the Pentagon Oct. 23, modifies previously awarded contract N0002418C2130. The work will support Naval Nuclear Propulsion […]

Public companies involved in supporting nuclear power, cleanup and security will be reporting financial earnings over the next couple of weeks. If recent earnings calls provide any clues there could be discussion of policy at the Department of Energy, its National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Department of Defense. Macro-economic trends […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) federal workforce fell nearly 12% as the agency’s workload reached its highest level since the Cold War, according to a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report. NNSA’s federal workforce declined by 236 employees, from 1,991 in the first quarter of fiscal 2025 to 1,755 in the second quarter of […]

Finnish spent fuel management company Posiva Oy was granted an operating license on Oct. 22 for the encapsulation and its final disposal facility, Onkalo, for spent nuclear fuel in Olkiluoto, Finland, the company said. The decision was approved by the government following a favorable safety assessment issued by Finland’s nuclear regulator, the Radiation and Nuclear […]

Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS), the joint prime contractor for Savannah River Site, is expanding research and development investments at the Savannah River Site with aims to accelerate technology development supporting the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) missions. SRNS’ Office of Innovation is directing research investments across the site and coordinating work with national laboratories, […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has finalized the rule to create a more uniform regulatory pathway for commercializing Department of Energy and Pentagon-approved reactor designs.  Originally proposed in April, the final rule is designed to allow NRC to leverage other agencies’ data and information regarding the reactor designs in its own regulatory review process. The rule […]

A little more than a year after Tim Walsh became the Department of Energy’s Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management (EM) the $8-billion office has reached key milestones in both nuclear cleanup and laying groundwork for future nuclear power, DOE said last week. Walsh was confirmed by the Senate on Oct. 7, 2025, the DOE Environmental […]