Publications: ExchangeMonitor Morning Briefing

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 […]

With the Department of Energy still mulling its contenders for the Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus program, Oklahoma officials recently shared more details of its proposal as it pushes to be selected as a host state. According to a September presentation, Oklahoma’s campus would consist of Oklo’s Aurora Powerhouse reactors, an isotope production facility, multiple fuel […]

The Department of Energy said last month it is launching a solicitation for a new management contract for the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee. The current contract will expire on Sept. 30, 2027, the DOE Office of Science said in a “notice of intent to […]

Polish company Polskie Elektrownie Jądrowe (PEJ) has authorized Westinghouse to start procuring long-lead reactor components for its first AP1000 reactor in Choczewo, Poland. According to Westinghouse’s Oct. 8 press release, this order would cover six of the plant’s reactor components, which include the reactor containment along with its related structural modules. PEJ and Westinghouse expect […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is seeking public comment on Fermi America’s draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for Units 1 – 4 of its Project Matador based in Carson County, Texas. Comments for the draft EIS for the Texas project are due by Nov. 23. According to NRC’s Oct. 9 Federal Register notice, the agency staff […]

The Department of Energy Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) at the Hanford Site in Richland, Wash., has now converted 250,000 gallons of less radioactive tank waste into solid glass form. In September, over 39,000 gallons were vitrified into glass form at the WTP’s Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste (DFLAW) Facility, Bechtel National, which built the plant, […]

General Dynamics (GD) on Wednesday announced Danny Deep will be the company’s next CEO effective Jan. 1, 2027, succeeding Phebe Novakovic, who has been the company’s top executive and chairman since January 2013. Deep has been president of GD since December 2025 and was elected to the company’s board in August. Novakovic will become executive […]

The Department of Energy’s Office of Legacy Management last month marked the 20th anniversary of final remediation of the Fernald Site, a former uranium processing facility 20 miles outside of Cincinnati, Ohio. Over 250 people turned out for a Sept. 19 commemoration of the Cold War nuclear site that operated from 1951 until 1986 when […]