Publications: ExchangeMonitor Morning Briefing

During a public meeting Tuesday in Carlsbad, N.M., most local residents voiced support for current operations of the Department of Energy’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) and argued a state agency’s proposal to modify WIPP’s permit is unnecessary. Further, most said if the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) thinks too few shipments of legacy transuranic […]

The foray into spent fuel recycling by the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management (EM) will take advantage of used nuclear fuel (UNF) from a test reactor at the Idaho National Laboratory. That is according to material issued with the request for applications (RFA) announced April 22.  DOE’s Environmental Management and Nuclear Energy (NE) […]

In a 12-month timeline, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued a subsequent license renewal for Duke Energy’s Robinson Nuclear Plant in Hartsville, S.C. The 20-year renewal extends the Robinson plant to operate through July 2050. According to NRC’s April 23 press release, the 12-month review timeline makes this the fastest license renewal review in […]

The Navy last Thursday awarded General Dynamics’ Electric Boat division an initial $197 million contract to support the AUKUS program as it helps Australia set up the capability to build and maintain nuclear-powered attack submarines.  AUKUS is the trilateral framework between the U.S., Australia and the United Kingdom to supply nuclear-powered submarines and other nuclear […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – With the renewed interest in domestic nuclear fuel reprocessing, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is working on a new rule focused on the reprocessing of spent fuel, commissioners told a House panel last week. During the House Energy and Commerce’s Energy Subcommittee’s April 22 budget hearing, Commissioner David Wright said NRC is able […]

Chantilly, Va.-based Amentum has hired two new vice presidents, one for investor relations and one for operations. Charles Grant, a longtime executive with roots in the Navy nuclear program, has been selected as senior vice president of operations for Amentum, he said this week on his LinkedIn page. Separately, Amentum announced in an April 22 […]

Northrop Grumman sold the U.S. Air Force one of the company’s test B-21 Raiders as part of an effort to accelerate production of the 6th generation stealth bomber. “To support the acceleration of aircraft deliveries, we agreed to sell an aircraft to the Air Force that was previously planned to be utilized as a company-owned […]

Rockville, Md.-based X-Energy officially became a publicly listed company on the NASDAQ Global Select Market on April 24, the company said in an April 24 LinkedIn post. The small modular reactor (SMR) developer will be traded under the ticker symbol of XE. On April 23, X-Energy announced the pricing of its upsized initial public offering […]

The Department of Energy released a request for information (RFI) last week seeking input from the industry to assess the United States’ readiness to deploy up to four nuclear reactors into space within five years. DOE’s solicitation, published April 21, looks for additional information to evaluate potential challenges or gaps related to reactor design, workforce […]

Jay Mullis, a longtime executive around the Department of Energy’s nuclear sites, has been appointed senior vice president for nuclear and waste management operations for United Cleanup Oak Ridge (UCOR). Mullis announced his new title over the weekend on LinkedIn. UCOR, a joint venture of partners Amentum and Honeywell, is the environmental prime for the […]

In recent years, work crews at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina have removed 640 tons of scrap metal and 617 tons of asbestos from the D Area, the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management (EM) said last week. Going back to the 1950s, facilities in the D Area made heavy water for […]

After serving in an interim capacity for the past year, Dan Sumner will become Westinghouse’s official president and chief executive officer, according to the company’s Monday press release. This new position is effective immediately, Westinghouse said. Sumner has served as the interim CEO for Westinghouse since April 2025 after former CEO Partrick Fragman retired from […]

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) posted a video April 26 remarking on the 40th anniversary of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant disaster, known to many as the “worst nuclear accident ever.” “We are marking a somber anniversary,” Rafael Grossi, the director general of the international nuclear watchdog, said in the video on the agency’s […]

The Air Force and Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) have selected Antares Nuclear, Radiant Nuclear and Westinghouse to construct and operate a microreactor on an Air Force base. According to the Air Force’s April 22 press release, Westinghouse will deploy its eVinci microreactor at the Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana. Radiant will construct its Kaleidos […]

The Navy plans to buy the first new Trump-class battleship, designated BBG(X), in 2028 and wants to spend upwards of $43.5 billion over the next five years to procure three battleships, according to budget request documents released Tuesday. The Navy’s fiscal year 2027 shipbuilding procurement budget book specifically outlines plans to spend $1 billion in […]

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Secretary of Energy Chris Wright were among the government officials evacuated from the White House Correspondents Dinner in Washington, D.C. after an armed man forced his way into the event headlined by President Donald Trump. Hegseth’s presence was cited by Trump during a press conference about an hour after […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission last week announced a proposed rule for microreactor approval under 10 CFR Part 57. The regulatory framework under Part 57 aims to enable rapid deployment of microreactors and other reactor technologies with similar risk profiles, according to NRC’s April 24 press release.  Under the proposed Part 57 rule, it allows for […]

Former Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) chief operating officer Mike Skaggs will become TVA’s interim president and CEO,  by the federal utility’s board of directors announced April 24. Current TVA CEO Don Moul has announced he will retire from the utility July 1. Skaggs, who worked as TVA’s chief operating officer from 2018 to 2021, will […]

Here are events related to nuclear matters that Exchange Monitor staff are tracking:  APRIL: 28: Meeting: The Department of Energy and its Bechtel-led prime for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) host a community meeting starting at noon Mountain Time at the Skeen-Whitlock Building, Wendell Weart Auditorium, 4021 National Parks Highway, Carlsbad, NM.  27-29: Conference: […]

The Pentagon is looking at competition in the software and support construction realms for the Northrop Grumman future LGM-35A Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), a top official said last week. The Air Force has been restructuring the program since July 2024 and expects Pentagon acquisition chief Michael Duffey to re-certify Sentinel for engineering and manufacturing […]

The Senate Appropriations Energy and Water subcommittee will hear testimony from three of the top officials at the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) on the agency’s fiscal 2027 budget request Wednesday, April 29. The three witnesses are Brandon Williams, administrator of NNSA; Matthew Napoli, deputy administrator for defense nuclear nonproliferation at NNSA; and David Beck, […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission told Democrats on a House Energy and Commerce panel that NRC can remain independent despite the chance of commissioners being terminated by the White House. Wednesday’s hearing of the House Energy and Commerce’s Energy subcommittee came four months after the NRC regained a full  five-member contingent. […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of Energy Chris Wright told a Senate panel Wednesday the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy fiscal 2027 budget request is pretty flat once the big picture is considered.  Wright talked about the request from the Donald Trump White House in a Wednesday Senate Appropriations Energy and Water Development subcommittee […]

While the nuclear-armed, sea-launched cruise missile (SLCM-N) was not in the White House fiscal 2027 budget request, Brandon Williams, head of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), said it has administration support. “The funding from the reconciliation process is carrying the project forward at pace,” Williams said. “We’re ahead of schedule, and we’re going to […]

Sen. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), ranking member of the House Armed Services Strategic Forces subcommittee, said it was “hard to see” a reason for the large spike in potential funding for the agency maintaining the nuclear weapons stockpile. “There’s a lot I can buy for $7 billion,” Moulton said, directing his question to Brandon Williams, head […]

Rep. Susie Lee (D-Nev.) April 15 pressed Energy Secretary Chris Wright over funding instability affecting key projects at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS), warning that continued uncertainty could delay work central to the nation’s nuclear stockpile stewardship mission. Lee, speaking at the House Appropriations Energy and Water subcommittee’s hearing on the White House’s Department […]

Gen. Dale White, the director of critical major weapons systems at the Pentagon, said the Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) program will have an official cost estimation by this summer as a result of the program restructuring. “Cost Estimation will be completed in the summer,” White said while testifying Monday at a Senate Armed Services […]