Publications: ExchangeMonitor Morning Briefing

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is seeking responses to gauge the market’s capabilities to help the agency perform its Force-on-Force inspection activities. According to the NRC’s Monday System for Award Management (SAM) notice, NRC invites all parties, including all categories of small businesses, to respond to the Source Sought Synopsis, a federal market survey tool. However, […]

Years after the Department of Energy cancelled the Mixed Oxide (MOX) Fuel Fabrication Facility at the Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina, a company based in France is making ambitious plans for MOX at the nuclear complex. The original multi-billion-dollar MOX project, meant to convert weapons grade plutonium into mixed-oxide fuel that could be […]

NextEra Energy and Dominion Energy’s merger could be jeopardized as the Virginia State Corporation Commission’s staff urge the commission to reject the proposal as it currently stands. In a Monday 201-page filing, the Virginia State Corporation Commission staff said the proposed merger application fails to prove that the merger would provide adequate service to Virginia […]

Mike Petters, a former CEO of Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), is returning to the company’s board of directors as the shipbuilder says its working to expand capacity to meet growing U.S. Navy demand. HII announced Oct. 20 that Petters, who served as the company’s first president and CEO, has been elected to its board. Petters […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has set a $23.5 billion performance baseline for the Savannah River Plutonium Processing Facility’s (SRPPF) main processing building, with completion now estimated for December 2038, the agency told Exchange Monitor Monday. The estimate covers the main processing building at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, where NNSA plans […]

In a short turnaround, West Virginia formally removed itself from consideration for the Department of Energy’s Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus program recently. The state was selected to be the sixth state on a shortlist for the program on Sept. 8, but by Sept. 30, West Virginia withdrew itself after saying it would not be able […]

North Korea is continuing to expand its nuclear arsenal and missile capabilities, including efforts to field more advanced and survivable systems, according to a new Congressional Research Service (CRS) report. The Oct. 13 CRS update says Pyongyang is pursuing a broader range of nuclear-capable delivery systems while expanding production of the fissile material needed to […]

AtkinsRéalis Group said late Monday afternoon it is teaming up with the state of Indiana and Hoosier Energy Rural Electric Cooperative to explore a potential 6,000-megawatt nuclear power project that would use Canadian reactor technology. The parties announced in a press release they have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to explore developing a complex […]

Kentucky state’s nuclear energy department issued a request for information (RFI) late last week to gauge interest in its nuclear reactor pilot program. According to the Oct. 16 RFI, the responses to the solicitation are due by Nov. 6 at 5 p.m. Eastern Time. Responses from utilities, nuclear reactor developers, prospective utility customers and other […]

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is recommending Congress consider clarifying the roles of the Department of Energy and its regulators when remediated lands from Cold War and Manhattan Project sites are transferred to local communities. In a report released this month, GAO also urged DOE to “direct cleanup sites to evaluate cleanup costs and schedule […]

Rockville, Md.-based X-energy, American Electric Power (AEP) and Amazon have signed a joint agreement to develop a 960-megawatt small modular reactor (SMR) project in Indiana. Using X-energy’s Xe-100 SMR, X-energy and AEP will pursue feasibility studies for the SMR at the former coal site, Breeding Generation Station, in Sullivan County, Ind. The two companies plan […]

The Navy earlier this month issued a new sources sought notice conducting market research to identify shipyard vendors capable of being prime construction yards for the next-generation attack submarine, or SSN(X), program. While the notice, due Oct. 15, sought sources able to act as prime builders in the next submarine that will succeed the Virginia-class […]

Centrus Energy acquired one of its manufacturing suppliers, Westernman Holdings, in a transaction for nearly $116 million, Centrus said Monday. The near-$116 million acquisition was made up of a combination of $95 million cash that was on hand and $21 million of equity, Centrus said in its press release. Additionally, Westernman and all its business […]

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced last week that after three decades of work, most radioactive soil cleanup at a Superfund site 12 miles west of New York City has been completed. A ceremony was held Oct. 5 to mark major soil cleanup of the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP) site in […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will host a joint public meeting with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) at NRC’s Headquarters in Rockville, Md. on Oct. 22.  According to FERC’s Oct. 15 meeting memo, the agencies will discuss various regulatory concerns such as grid reliability, increasing energy demand and existing and new nuclear power plants. The […]

Arizona State University, Purdue University and the University of Tennessee have banded together to create a consortium focused on filling the pipeline for the advanced nuclear workforce.  The New Nuclear Academic Consortium, announced on Oct. 14, the three public research universities are working on a regional and national effort to build up a new group […]

Here are events related to nuclear matters that Exchange Monitor staff are tracking:  OCTOBER: 22: Meeting:  The Texas Low Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact Compact Commission meets at 9 a.m. Central Time at Andrews County Commissioners Court 201 North Main, Room 104 Andrews, Texas 79714 by webinar and in person.  27: Conference: The Energy Technology […]

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said last week the Trump administration plans to continue its push for at least $350 billion, “potentially more,” in defense funds via the reconciliation process “regardless of what happens in the midterms.”  Hegseth’s doubling down on the push for a $1.5 trillion fiscal 2027 defense topline, to include the $350 billion […]

The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration has authorized full construction of the pit production facility’s main processing building at the Savannah River Site, the agency said Oct. 16.  DOE approved the performance baseline for the Savannah River Pit Production Facility’s Main Processing Building on Oct. 15, the department said in a news release. […]

Westinghouse’s AP100 reactor design certification renewal earned the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s approval and now extends the company’s reactor design through 2066, NRC said Wednesday. NRC said in its press release this approval would give future applicants a standardized AP1000 reactor design that replicates Units 3 and 4 at Plant Vogtle in Waynesboro, Ga. NRC added […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission raises concern of a “chilled work environment” at two departments at Holtec’s Palisades Nuclear Plant that needs to be addressed promptly, the agency said Tuesday. According to NRC’s regulations, a chilled work environment refers to a workplace culture where staffers feel suppressed or discouraged to raise nuclear safety or regulatory concerns […]

Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Newport News Shipbuilding division has won a $56 million Navy contract to provide engineering and design support for the AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine program, the company said Oct. 13. The contract includes an option that would increase its cumulative value to $91 million if exercised, HII said in a press release. AUKUS […]

Seattle-based Avalanche Energy Designs, a fusion energy developer, signed an agreement last week with the Tri-City Development Council to cooperate on building a plant capable of manufacturing fusion power devices in Richland, Wash.  Richland is nestled next to the Department of Energy’s sprawling Hanford Site.  A big hurdle with fusion is that the power produced […]

The Air Force tested an unarmed Mk21A reentry vehicle Oct. 9, launching it aboard a Minotaur I rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif., as part of the vehicle’s development. The flight was an in-flight environmental test supporting development of the Mk21A, a new reentry vehicle that the Air Force plans to integrate onto a […]

The Washington state Department of Ecology is extending the public comment period on the sitewide Dangerous Waste Permit for the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site until Jan. 15, 2027, the state announced this week. The prior comment deadline was Oct. 27. The draft renewal document is known as Revision 9A. The last big revision occurred […]

Oklo will continue to pursue its Groves isotope production facility project under the Department of Energy’s Nuclear Energy Launch Pad initiative, the company said Tuesday. The Groves isotope production facility, referred to as Groves-2 Forge, will include “capabilities to produce, process and purify critical isotopes”, according to Oklo’s press release. Oklo said it wants to […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has awarded a nearly $3 million contract to renovate part of its Albuquerque headquarters into a secure space, according to a federal procurement notice. NNSA awarded QA Engineering $2.99 million Sept. 28 for design-build construction to renovate a limited area of the John A. Gordon Complex and convert it […]

The Department of Energy’s nuclear cleanup branch said Tuesday it has now reduced its inventory of depleted uranium hexafluoride DUF6 cylinders at the Porstmouth Site in Ohio by 20%. DOE’s Office of Environmental Management announced Tuesday its AtkinsRéalis-led contractor Mission Conversion Services Alliance (MCSA) has converted DUF6 from 4,500 cylinders at Portsmouth, into a safe […]

The Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy and the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) Monday to collaborate on using advanced nuclear technology for maritime purposes.  According to ABS’ press release, the MOU explores technologies ranging from “floating power solutions, nuclear-powered vessels and the development of the ports, shipyards […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Army’s Janus nuclear power program could support the military’s broader energy resilience goals under the Donald Trump administration’s “Fortress America” initiative, though officials said the effort will encompass multiple energy technologies. “Fortress America” – which stands for Federal Operations for Resilience, Troop Resources, Energy, Supply and Survivability – is a national […]