Publications: ExchangeMonitor Morning Briefing

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will host a hybrid observation meeting on June 15 to give the public an opportunity to see the agency is performing its regulatory function and to discuss regulatory issues. NRC said in its meeting memo that the meeting will be an all day meeting, starting at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time and […]

In less than a year, Doug Weaver was officially sworn in as a Nuclear Regulatory Commission member for a new five-year term on June 5. 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 passed by a […]

The Idaho Cleanup Project recently completed two shipments of gloveboxes from Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) to disposal facilities. According to North Wind Group’s May 27 press release, crews from the Idaho Environment Coalition, led by Amentum and North Wind Portage, dismantled the gloveboxes. A glovebox is a sealed unit designed to protect personnel from […]

The House Armed Services Committee’s (HASC) rejected an amendment to the fiscal 2027 defense authorization bill to cut funding for the new Trump-class battleship but did agree to a report on how the Navy will manage another nuclear-powered vessel. During the full committee markup last week, ranking member Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) offered an amendment […]

The defense ministers of the three AUKUS partners last week announced Australia will now exclusively buy used American Virginia-class attack submarines (SSNs). According to a joint statement released by the U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and the British and Australian defense ministers John Healey and Richard Marles, respectively, the three welcomed a proposed approach […]

Here are events related to nuclear matters that Exchange Monitor staff are tracking:  June 09: Meeting; : The U.S. Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board will host a public meeting starting at 8 a.m. Eastern Time at the AUSA Conference & Event Center  2425 Wilson Blvd, Arlington, VA 22201.  10: Meeting: The Oak Ridge Site-Specific Advisory […]

Several officials from environmental organizations held a meeting in Washington, D.C. Tuesday warning against reworking the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and streamlining nuclear deployment amid the push of powering artificial intelligence (AI).  Over the past year, various environmental groups have opposed the United States’ renewed interest in nuclear power, spearheaded by President Donald Trump’s administration. Trump’s […]

Stevan Pearce, a former Republican congressman who represented the area around the Department of Energy’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), was confirmed by the Senate last month to be director of the Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Pearce was among a large bloc of GOP nominees narrowly confirmed by the Senate 46-to-43 on […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) is starting work on a new facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) that the agency says will strengthen U.S. capabilities to monitor foreign uranium enrichment activities and support nuclear nonproliferation missions. The Advanced Testbed and Operations Learning Laboratory, or ATOLL, will be a 21,000-square-foot facility designed to develop […]

The Department of Energy and the Washington state Department of Ecology will hold a public meeting June 17 on a proposed modular system at the Hanford Site’s 200 West Area to remove cesium from tank waste prior to grouting. The hybrid meeting is set for June 17 at 5:30 p.m. PT in the Gallery Room […]

The Y-12 National Security Complex has completed its fiscal 2026 uranium casting production for the Naval Reactors program ahead of schedule and, according to a Wednesday announcement from the site. Y-12 produced 175 uranium castings during the fiscal year, which provided enriched uranium feedstock used in the fuel supply chain for the U.S. Navy’s nuclear-powered […]

The House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Energy subcommittee will host a hearing to examine several pieces of nuclear legislation on June 9 in Room 2123 in Rayburn House Office Building at 10:15 a.m. Eastern Time. The subcommittee panel will look at three bills that have already been introduced during this Congressional session. It will examine […]

Fluor Marine Propulsion has been awarded a $1.03 billion contract modification to continue work supporting the Navy’s nuclear propulsion enterprise at the Naval Nuclear Laboratory, according to a Defense Department contract announcement Tuesday. The cost-plus-fixed-fee modification, awarded under an existing naval propulsion contract, provides funding for naval nuclear propulsion work performed through the Naval Nuclear […]

The Department of Energy is reviewing roughly 80 internal orders under an initiative called “Project Velocity” aimed at accelerating work across the nuclear weapons enterprise, Los Alamos National Laboratory Deputy Director for Mission Operations Mark Davis said last month. Speaking before the Los Alamos County Council, Davis said the effort is intended to streamline operations […]

The Department of Energy’s liquid waste contractor at the Hanford Site in Richland, Wash., is inviting expressions of interest (EOI) for vendors interested in the West Area Tank Farms Risk Management (WARM) construction services work. “WARM is being constructed to supply material for off-site treatment and disposal, supporting compliance with regulatory milestones,” according to the […]

Years after an agreement apparently resolved a federal safety watchdog’s access to staff and records at Department of Energy nuclear sites, the dispute appears to be back. In an April 29 letter to Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board’s (DNFSB) lone member said DOE is not complying with its Atomic […]

A multi-billion-dollar expansion is coming to Urenco USA’s National Enrichment Facility in Eunice, N.M., enlarging the capacity by nearly 50%, the company said Tuesday. Urenco USA, an affiliate of the European Urenco Group, said in a press release it will install 2.1 million separative work units (SWU) of new enrichment capacity of low-enriched uranium at […]

The New York Power Authority released two new solicitations Monday that aim to advance Gov. Kathy Hochul’s (D) plan to add five new gigawatts, or 5,000 megawatts, of nuclear power. The first solicitation builds on Hochul’s initial plans to add 1,000 megawatts of new nuclear energy to upstate New York. The New York Power Authority […]

The president of the 2026 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference says continued engagement among the five recognized nuclear-weapon states is critical to reducing risks and preserving prospects for future arms control progress amid growing geopolitical tensions. Speaking at the Arms Control Association’s annual meeting, Vietnam’s United Nations Ambassador Do Hung Viet said disagreements among […]

The San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) Community Engagement Panel will hold a joint hybrid meeting Thursday with nuclear industry experts to discuss recent developments in spent nuclear fuel recycling and disposal initiatives. The meeting will be held at the Casino San Clemente, 140 Avenida Pico, San Clemente, Calif. and it will begin at 5:30 […]

The Department of Energy is not yet sharing specifics about the states underserious consideration for its Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus program,  The DOE program seeks federal-state partnerships to increase the nation’s fuel fabrication, uranium enrichment and waste disposal efforts. The program was announced in January, and in April, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said 28 states […]

Curio submitted a letter of intent to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to start the pre-application work and the eventual submission of its operating license for the NuCycle used nuclear fuel recycling facility at a site yet to be determined.  According to Curio’s May 27 press release, the company plans to seek approval for the fuel […]

The House Armed Services Committee will mark up its version of a must-pass policy bill Thursday that includes a clause on the relationship between the Pantex Plant and the nearby Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport in Texas. A provision of the fiscal 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which will undergo an amendment session Thursday, […]

Austin, Texas-based Last Energy received the Department of Energy’s approval of its preliminary safety analysis last week for its test microreactor at the Texas A&M-RELLIS campus in Bryan, Texas. Last Energy becomes the most recent nuclear company to achieve this regulatory milestone under DOE’s reactor pilot program, which seeks to have at least three test […]

Veolia, the international environmental services company, announced Monday it has completed its purchase of Pennsylvania-based Clean Earth, a hazardous waste management company. Veolia, which in North America is involved in nuclear remediation-related work, said the transaction is valued at $3 billion. Clean Earth handles everything from contaminated soil and dredge material to per- and polyfluoroalkyl […]

Tetra Tech has been awarded a contract valued at nearly $1.8 million to assist the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) in developing federal environmental policy documents. The work involves technical support services for National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance for site-wide document development for NNSA’s Office of Environment, Safety, and Health, according […]