Publications: ExchangeMonitor Morning Briefing

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 […]

Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Secretary of Energy Chris Wright disagreed Tuesday over the severity of reduced funding for the Hanford Site in the Department of Energy’s fiscal 2027 budget request. Wright told Cantwell during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing that he considers the proposed Hanford cuts “modest.” Further, Wright said the […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – During a Tuesday Senate hearing, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright offered a briefing to an Arizona Democrat on what the Department of Energy is doing to fast-track reactor deployment. In the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee fiscal 2027 budget hearing, Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) said there have been concerns about a […]

In a letter to Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, lawmakers wrote Monday that Congress is investigating “recent unconfirmed public reporting on the disappearance and death of individuals with access to sensitive U.S. scientific information.” As of April 17, 10 scientists were recently reported either dead or missing. All 10 were involved in researching and working […]

Fermi America’s CEO Toby Neugebauer and chief financial officer (CFO) Miles Everson have resigned from their respective roles, according to recent Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings from the company. According to an April 17 SEC filing, Neugebauer’s resignation was effective on April 17. Everson’s resignation was made effective on April 19, according to a […]

Secretary of Energy Chris Wright told the Senate Energy and Environmental Resources Committee Tuesday Department of Energy nuclear experts are involved in negotiating a nuclear deal with Iran, including himself. “Look, I’m the primary energy advisor to the president and have been discussing the Iran situation, and potential solutions to the Iran situation since the […]

Kairos Power has broken ground on its Hermes 2 demonstration plant in Oak Ridge, Tenn. over the weekend. The Hermes 2 plant is Kairos’s first commercial-scale reactor and was issued a construction permit from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2024. Barnard Construction, which is currently working on the Hermes low-power demonstration reactor, will serve as […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s fiscal year 2027 budget request will be the subject of a  House Energy panel hearing on Wednesday.  The House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Energy subcommittee will also discuss NRC’s implementation of the Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy Act – or the ADVANCE Act and Executive Order 14300, during the hearing. All […]

David Beck, deputy administrator for defense programs at the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), told Congress Monday he would give them a plan for spending fiscal 2026 reconciliation funds “within the next 30 days.” Beck was responding to a question by Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) while testifying in front of the Senate Armed Services Strategic […]

Santa Clara, Calif.-based Oklo made several personnel changes in key management positions and to its board of directors last week. Oklo appointed four new directors on April 14. The board members are David Christian, David Park, Derek Kan and Mark Peters. The appointments were made effective April 10, according to Oklo’s press release. “As we […]

Department of Energy contractor BWX Technologies (BWXT) is expanding its heavy-manufacturing footprint by signing a deal to acquire Precision Components Group (PCG) and two of its subsidiaries. The privately-held PCG had $125 million for 2025 revenue and a workforce of roughly 400 people, Lynchburg, Va.-based BWXT said in a Monday press release. BWXT did not […]

Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), chair of the Senate Armed Services Strategic Forces subcommittee, said she has “faith” the models used at the national labs are good, but it’s “always good to be ready” to test weapons regardless. “I think we should listen to the scientists,” Fischer said in a panel with the Center for Strategic […]

Centrus Energy said Monday it has selected Geiger Brothers as its construction contractor for the multi-billion expansion project for the Centrus uranium enrichment facility in Piketon, Ohio, a deal potentially worth $900 million. According to a Centrus Securities and Exchange Commission Monday filing, the time-and-materials contract signed by the two companies runs through Jan. 30, […]

Tim Walsh, who heads the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management (EM), said Monday DOE’s Hanford Site in Washington state remains the program’s biggest nuclear cleanup challenge. But at the same time Hanford, which accounts for about 40% of EM’s budget, is primed for a “breakout year,” Walsh told a Senate Armed Forces panel […]

The Department of Energy’s nuclear remediation contractor at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is preparing to accept used fuel from Penn State University that could assist with both energy and medical research, DOE’s Office of Environmental Management said recently. INL can accept Training, Research, Isotope, General Atomics (TRIGA-) fuel for the first time in decades […]

Here are events related to nuclear matters that Exchange Monitor staff are tracking:  APRIL: 20: Conference: The Nuclear in New Mexico Conference presented by the Clean Energy Association of New Mexico gets underway starting at 9 a.m. Mountain Time at the Hyatt Regency Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico.  21: Conference: The Energy Communities Alliance sponsors […]

The state of New York plans to select a site to host at least 1,000 megawatts of new nuclear power this year, according to an April 13 Bloomberg article. New York Power Authority Senior Vice President of Nuclear Development Todd Josifovski said in the article that the state will issue a request for proposals to […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will have a public meeting with its Advisory Committee on the Medical Uses of Isotopes to discuss medical use of radioactive materials on April 21 at 10 a.m. at NRC’s headquarters in Bethesda, Md. According to NRC’s April 15 press release, the commission meeting discussion will include the Advisory Committee on […]

Sandia National Laboratories is advancing construction of its new Power Sources Capability (PSC) facility, a major infrastructure project supporting the nuclear security mission, the lab said last week. The lab in New Mexico held a ceremony April 14 for the installation of the final beam in the facility, according to a press release.  The roughly […]

Los Alamos Technical Associates (LATA) has promoted Cory Tackett to assistant vice president supporting the Department of War Programs, the company said in a press release. In the role, Tackett will help oversee programs at the Defense Department tied to the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) weapons activities portfolio.  Tackett’s 13-year tenure at LATA consists […]

The Department of Energy’s $8.2-billion fiscal 2027 request for its nuclear cleanup branch, which includes a budget cut for the Hanford Site in Washington state, would not affect solidification of less radioactive tank waste, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright told a House panel Wednesday. During an exchange with Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.), Wright said the […]

Secretary of Energy Chris Wright confirmed Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico has “just begun” pit production in testimony Wednesday to the House Appropriations Energy and Water subcommittee on the fiscal 2027 budget request for the Department of Energy. Wright was responding to a question by Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), ranking member of the […]