Publications: ExchangeMonitor Morning Briefing

Even a temporary pause on construction of the Uranium Processing Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Tennessee could cost the federal government nearly $1 billion, the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) said this week in asking a federal judge to refuse a request from a group of environmental organizations for a stop-work […]

House Appropriations defense subcommittee Chairman Pete Visclosky (D-Ind.) said Nov. 6 that he will not run for office again in 2020, ending a 35-year career in public office and opening up the chairmanship to new candidates should Democrats hold the majority after next year’s elections. “For my entire career I have worked to build support […]

The U.S. branch of French nuclear company Orano said Wednesday it is preparing to deploy the first of its next-generation radioactive waste transport casks. Columbia, Md.-based Orano TN has manufactured the initial NUHOMS MP197HB, but still must assemble the container, according to a press release. It is expected by the end of 2019 to be ready for […]

The Weapons Complex Morning Briefing will not be published Monday in observance of Veterans Day. Look for the next issue in your inbox on Tuesday, Nov. 12.

Centrus Energy said Tuesday it expects to pay nearly $30 million out of its own pocket to develop a new, made-with-American-parts uranium enrichment cascade for the Department of Energy. Centrus on Monday announced it had finalized a three-year, $115 million contract with DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy to build the 16-machine cascade at the Portsmouth […]

The $506 million in quarterly revenue reported Monday by BWX Technologies is its highest ever, not just for the third quarter as indicated in a Tuesday article in Weapons Complex Morning Briefing.

Savannah River Nuclear Solutions said Tuesday it has commissioned a second furnace to prepare for four planned tritium extractions next year at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in Aiken, S.C. The Fluor-led site management and operations contractor said in a press release it had fired up a “previously unused” second furnace some time […]

BWX Technologies, trumpeting strong third-quarters earnings results Tuesday, said it is not under contract to build any more common missile compartment tubes for U.S. naval submarines, beyond those already contracted for production by 2021. After announcing in 2018 it had botched welds on 12 of the tubes, which were destined for both Columbia- and Virginia-class […]

A Jacobs subsidiary this week is commencing the final phase of tearing down the Plutonium Finishing Plant at the Energy Department’s Hanford Site in Washington state. “I am proud to report that our team has safely completed lower-risk demolition of the Plutonium Finishing Plant’s (PFP) Main Processing Facility,” CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation President and CEO Ty […]

BWX Technologies President and CEO Rex Geveden said Tuesday the U.S. Energy Department should soon issue one multibillion-dollar contract at the Hanford Site in Washington state, while another probably won’t land until mid-2020. “In the coming weeks we expect to hear about the Hanford Plateau Central Cleanup contract for which we are competing,” Geveden said […]

A breakthrough on fiscal year 2020 defense authorizations and appropriations is unlikely this week as House members are out of town and Armed Services Committee staffers work to hash out differences in House and Senate bills behind the scenes, lawmakers said Nov. 5. Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) Chairman Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) told reporters that […]

The state lawmaker who has headed Wyoming’s latest exploration of hosting a spent nuclear fuel storage facility has shifted that leadership role over to Gov. Mark Gordon (R). On Tuesday, state Sen. Jim Anderson (R) told the Wyoming Legislature’s Joint Minerals, Business, and Economic Development Committee he has withdrawn a proposed bill to allow the […]

A female former security police officer at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Nevada National Security Site, who alleged she was brutally assaulted by fellow officers during a drill, has settled a lawsuit against former site protective services contractor Centerra Group, according to a recent court filing. Jennifer Glover, who told the story of her alleged […]

U.S. Energy Department contractor BWX Technologies on Monday reported a company record for quarterly revenue – $506 million for the three-month period that ended Sept.30, an 18.9% jump from $426 million a year ago. The Lynchburg, Va.-based company reported $74.8 million in net income, or $0.78 per diluted share, compared with $77.9 million, or $0.78 […]

Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.) on Monday said he would not reverse his decision to retire, even with the opportunity to take the top Republican spot on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Shimkus said last week he would reconsider his Aug. 30 announcement that he would not seek re-election in 2020 after Energy and Water […]

Washington River Protection Solutions is looking for a subcontractor to fabricate, test, and deliver a replacement melter for low-activity radioactive waste at the Waste Treatment Plant being built at the Energy Department’s Hanford Site in Washington state. The AECOM-led contractor, which manages storage of 56 million gallons of radioactive and chemical waste in 117 underground […]

The liquid waste contractor for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site double-stacked 191 canisters of treated liquid radioactive waste in fiscal 2019, and plans to stack another 300 containers in the current 2020 federal budget year. Savannah River Remediation (SRR) says the project costs about $3 million annually and is freeing up space […]

In a rare public outing, Adm. James Caldwell, head of the U.S. Navy’s Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program, is scheduled to address an industry banquet on Thursday near Washington.  Caldwell, the dual-hatted admiral responsible for both the Navy and National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) nuclear-reactor programs, is the scheduled featured speaker for the closing banquet of […]

With less than three weeks to go before the current continuing resolution runs out, President Donald Trump has so far refused to pledge to sign a new agreement to prevent a potential government shutdown. Speaking to reporters Sunday, Trump said his commitment is contingent upon the deal that lawmakers work out. “I wouldn’t commit to […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in September continued its nearly yearlong trend of spending just a few hundred dollars per month of its balance from the federal Nuclear Waste Fund. The total for the month was $699 for unspecified program planning and support, according to the agency’s latest report to Congress. That is primarily how […]

The U.S. Department of Energy has finalized a deal for Centrus Energy Corp. to produce high-assay low-enriched uranium fuel for nuclear reactors by building a new all-domestic enrichment cascade — technology that could one day contribute to national defense. The Bethesda, Md.-based company, the former U.S. Enrichment Corp., announced the news in a press release […]

The U.S. Energy Department on Monday issued a request for information kicking off market research for the next cleanup contract at the Moab Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) project in Utah. The current contract, held by North Wind Portage, expires after September 2021. The work involves moving tailings from the old Atlas Mineral Corp. […]

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Monday formally approved a reduction in the emergency preparedness requirements for the retired Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Massachusetts. The changes include elimination of a dedicated 10-mile emergency planning zone in the license for the Cape Cod property. The requirement for a specific off-site radiological emergency response plan will […]

A radiation detection system developed at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River National Laboratory went into service at the Port of New York and New Jersey this year, lab management contractor Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) said Friday. The On-Dock Rail Straddle Carrier Portal Monitoring System is designed to detect radiation inside intermodal shipping containers: […]

A California Superior Court judge ruled last week against a request by a watchdog organization to suspend the transfer of used reactor fuel into dry storage at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS). In a motion filed with the court in October, El Cajon-based Citizens’ Oversight sought the temporary halt and authorization for discovery […]

FirstEnergy Corp. on Monday reported $391 million in net income for the third quarter of 2019, after sustaining a $512 million loss in the same three months of 2018. That was good for $0.73 in earning per share, versus a $1.02 per-share loss a year ago, according to the Akron, Ohio, power company’s earnings release. […]