Publications: ExchangeMonitor Morning Briefing

The Department of Energy (DOE) has established a categorical exclusion from certain National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) procedures for approving and constructing advanced reactors. The exclusion is a “category of actions that the agency has determined, as established in its agency NEPA procedures, normally does not significantly affect the quality of the human environment and […]

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) earnings increased in the first quarter of fiscal 2026 which the Knoxville-based federal utility attributed to higher sales thanks largely to weather impacts and growing demand from data processing and related sectors.. Net earnings for the first quarter of fiscal 2026 ended Dec. 31 were $266 million, up from $125 million, […]

NextEra Energy is considering adding up to 6 gigawatts or 6,000 megawatts of new nuclear generation in part to help meet artificial intelligence (AI) data center demands. In a Jan. 27 earnings call, the Juno Beach, Fla.-based energy utility said small modular reactors (SMRs) could be built at its existing nuclear power plants or at […]

Ontario Power Generation (OPG) said Monday it has recompleted refurbishment of Unit 4 at Darlington Nuclear Generating Station in Ontario, Canada.  Darlington staff are currently doing final testing in preparation of returning Unit 4 to operation, OPG said. The major refurbishment project that cost C$12.8 billion (US$ 9.3 billion) is on track to be completed […]

With the recent retirement of Reinhard Knerr, April Ladd has become the acting deputy manager of the Department of Energy’s Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office. That is according to a website for the office that oversees the DOE’s Portsmouth Site in Ohio as well as the Paducah Site in Kentucky. Ladd is a certified project director with […]

Virginia-based Huntington Ingalls (HII) , a shipbuilder and major contractor for the Department of Energy and Department of Defense, will hold a quarterly earnings call with financial analysts this week. HII President and CEO Chris Kastner and other company officials will discuss fourth quarter 2025 financial results with Wall Street analysts starting at 9 a.m. […]

The current administration is taking “meaningful action on regulatory reform” on a “breathtaking” timeline at the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), according to Kim Budil, director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. “So I think the biggest thing for us has been the meaningful action on regulatory reform,” Budil said on a panel at Exchange Monitor’s […]

BAE Systems said Jan. 30 it has opened a new office in Utah north of Salt Lake City to serve as a company hub for intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) sustainment and modernization.  Early last year, the company received a $1.2 billion award from the U.S. Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center’s ICBM directorate at Hill Air […]

Non-essential employees at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina were to report to work three hours later than usual on Monday, following Winter Storm Gianna, which caused significant damage, traffic crashes and fatalities across several states over the weekend. The city of Aiken, where SRS is located, saw about three inches […]

Here are events related to nuclear matters that Exchange Monitor staff are tracking:  February  10: Earnings call: Amentum will hold its quarterly financial results conference call starting at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.  17: Earnings call: Fluor will discuss quarterly financial results in a call with analysts starting at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.

Sean Musick, formerly a general manager at Chalk River within the Canadian National Laboratories, has taken a new post at Fluor-led Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) in South Carolina. At SRNS, the prime contractor for the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site, Musick will be deputy senior vice president for strategic planning and integration. Musick, […]

The Government of Saskatchewan and Regina, Canada-based utility SaskPower are planning to evaluate large nuclear reactors for potential deployment in the Saskatchewan province. The technology selection process for large nuclear reactors will be in conjunction with SaskPower’s plans to select small modular reactors (SMR) projects, according to its Jan. 28 press release. In October 2025, […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has appointed Christopher Carroll to be its chief financial officer effective immediately, NRC said in a Jan. 26 press release.  Carroll has been working as the acting CFO for the agency since May 2025. He joined NRC in 2024 as the deputy CFO after 24 years of service in the Air […]

Led by its shipbuilding segment, General Dynamics (GD) last week posted solid fourth quarter results to cap off a strong fiscal year. Net income in the quarter was flat at $1.1 billion and earnings per share (EPS) of $4.17 were two cents higher than a year ago due to a lower outstanding share count, according […]

Northrop Grumman remains in negotiations with the Defense Department on accelerating production of the Air Force’s B-21 stealth bomber and an agreement to do so is expected this quarter, the company’s chief executive said last week. The B-21 talks are down to the “finer points” and what the “financial implications” are for Northrop Grumman, Kathy […]

ARLINGTON, VA – The W80-5, a new variant of the W80 warhead family, is on a “more aggressive schedule” to go on the nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile (SLCM-N), weapons directors said on the final day of Exchange Monitor’s Nuclear Deterrence Summit. Rita Gonzales, Deputy Laboratories Director for Nuclear Deterrence at Sandia National Laboratories, and Bradley […]

ARLINGTON, VA – To garner support for artificial intelligence (AI) data centers on federal land, the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) should “state its value propositions” early on, Senior Director at Microsoft Federal Bryan Lopez said here Wednesday. Lopez told Exchange Monitor’s Nuclear Deterrence Summit that this goes a long way in helping hyperscalers consider […]

The Department of Energy issued a request for information (RFI) Wednesday seeking states interested in hosting Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campuses. The proposed campuses must support capabilities of the full nuclear fuel cycle, such as fuel fabrication, enrichment, reprocessing spent nuclear fuel and disposal of waste, according to DOE’s press release. The approach could be more […]

ARLINGTON, VA – The U.S. Air Force is considering modular missile silos to house the service’s future LGM-35A Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) by Northrop Grumman, while using the same locations as the previous siloes. “My understanding is they [the Air Force] will largely use the same locations,” Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) told reporters Wednesday […]

Westinghouse has partnered with Nordion and Public Service Enterprise Group Nuclear (PSEG) to launch the first commercial-scale production of Cobalt-60 in pressurized water reactors. Cobalt-60 is a critical isotope used in the medical field and other industries. Isotope uses include cancer radiation therapy, sterilizing medical devices and food irradiation.  Westinghouse, which designed the pressurized water […]

The Department of Energy’s Hanford Advisory Board (HAB) is looking for new members to help provide nuclear cleanup advice for the former plutonium production complex at Richland, Wash. Formed in 1994, HAB predates most other DOE Office of Environmental Management Advisory Boards. The panel provides “informed recommendations” to not only DOE but also the U.S. […]

ARLINGTON, VA – Charles Ball was named the lead for the Genesis Mission at the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the agency’s head Brandon Williams said Tuesday in his keynote at Exchange Monitor’s Nuclear Deterrence Summit. The Genesis Mission is an executive order from November by President Donald Trump which calls for a national effort […]

ARLINGTON, VA – The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) is embracing a culture of urgency and shifting from a scientific to production mindset, according to Administrator Brandon Williams Tuesday in his day 2 keynote at Exchange Monitor’s Nuclear Deterrence Summit. “Urgency requires a fundamental, fundamental shift in how we work,” Williams said of the Department […]

ARLINGTON, VA – Scott Pappano, Principal Deputy Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), said Tuesday that Savannah River can still play a “supporting role” in pit production between now and the completion of its pit production facility. Pappano gave a keynote on the second day of Exchange Monitor’s Nuclear Deterrence Summit. NNSA must […]

Nuclear power plants in the United States experienced fewer outages in the first three weeks of this year compared to 2025, according to a Monday report from the Energy Information Administration. From Jan. 1 to Jan. 21, nuclear power outages averaged two gigawatts or 2,000 megawatts, which is 20% less than the same period in […]

The Doomsday Clock, a symbolic device the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists uses to signify closeness to “global catastrophe” set another record closeness to midnight as of Tuesday. “A year ago, we warned that the world was perilously close to global disaster and that any delay in reversing course increased the probability of catastrophe,” the Manhattan […]