Publications: ExchangeMonitor Morning Briefing

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has agreed to review the first two parts of Fermi America’s combined license application. The application contained sufficient design information for a license to construct four Westinghouse AP1000 reactors at the proposed site in Amarillo, Texas, according to NRC’s Monday press release. NRC said it does not anticipate any safety concerns […]

The U.S. Department of Justice, representing the Department of Energy this week urged a federal magistrate in Oregon to throw out a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit brought by Columbia Riverkeeper. Columbia Riverkeeper sued DOE in mid-June in the U.S. District Court of Oregon alleging FOIA violations over the Joe Biden administration’s Cleanup to […]

The first screening of “The Nuclear Frontier” documentary is set to premiere on Sept. 15 at the Kennedy Center of the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. at 5 p.m. Eastern Time. ​​A reception will follow at 6 p.m. Eastern Time, which includes a keynote address, panel discussion and premiere screening. The link to RSVP for […]

Curio recently announced the completion of a laboratory-scale demonstration for its nuclear fuel recycling technology, NuCycle, in collaboration with four Department of Energy National Laboratories. DOE’s Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Washington state, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Tennessee and Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico contributed to the […]

The Department of Energy announced recently it will provide over $35 million toward 42 projects with aims to advance emerging energy technologies at DOE national laboratories related to nuclear energy and artificial intelligence. The awards were made through DOE’s Technology Commercialization Fund, which has a program in fiscal 2025 called the Core Laboratory Infrastructure for […]

Secretary of Energy Chris Wright issued a statement Tuesday seeking to knock down speculation DOE might cancel the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) weeks before it is scheduled to start converting some radioactive waste into glass at the Hanford Site. “Contrary to news reports, the Department of Energy has made no changes to its […]

The House Rules Committee Monday set the terms for debating the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on the House floor sometime this week, to include nuclear-related amendments from both sides of the aisle. The House version would authorize $25.4 billion for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), and the original version of the bill […]

The Department of Energy has published a request for application seeking deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) data centers and power generation projects at its Idaho National Laboratory site. Applicants will be responsible for constructing, operating and decommissioning each infrastructure project and must secure utility interconnection agreements for new electricity generation and storage systems, according to […]

Roger Jarrell has left the Department of Energy and as a result is no longer the top federal supervisor at the Office of Environmental Management, DOE confirmed Monday afternoon. Jarrell, the principal deputy assistant secretary for Environmental Management, or EM2, “is no longer with the department,” a spokesperson for DOE headquarters said in an email […]

Nuclear Regulatory Commission assistant general counsel for legislation, ethics, and administrative law Tison Campbell announced his Sept. 5 departure from the agency via LinkedIn. Starting as an attorney in the NRC’s Office of General Counsel, Campbell spent nearly 20 years working in various high-level legal roles at the nuclear regulatory agency. Campbell served as the […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold a hybrid meeting on Sept. 17 to discuss Holtec Decommissioning International’s licensing termination plan for the Oyster Creek Nuclear Generation Station in New Jersey. The meeting will be held from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Eastern Time at Lacey Township Municipal Building at 818 Lacey Road in Forked River, […]

Rik Geiersbach was just appointed chief strategy officer for BWX Technologies and will report directly to CEO Rex Geveden, the nuclear fuel company announced Monday on its website. “As chief strategy officer, Rik will lead the development, execution and integration of BWXT’s enterprise strategy and merger and acquisition initiatives,” Geveden said in the release. “His […]

The Government Accountability Office (GAO), in a report published Sep. 5, gave two recommendations for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) to meet its goal to upgrade and repair its fusion facilities. The goal, the report said, is to meet a 10-year plan NNSA submitted to Congress in January 2023, requesting $492 million over six […]

Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.), a member of the House Appropriations Committee whose district includes the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site, praised the 214-to-213 passage of the fiscal 2026 House Energy and Water Appropriations bill. “The House has just sent a clear message about the role nuclear will play in the future of American energy,” Newhouse […]

President Donald Trump on Sept. 5 signed an executive order establishing the Pentagon’s “secondary” name as the “Department of War.”  The directive is an initial step in moving to officially change the Department of Defense’s title, which would require congressional approval.  “This is something we thought long and hard about. We’ve been talking about it […]

The Department of Energy’s Portsmouth Paducah Project Office and a contractor are installing a new system meant to cut downtime at depleted uranium hexafluoride (DUF6) plants The current DUF6 conversion process makes use of small vacuum pumps to take out residual uranium hexafluoride (UF6) from heated cylinders, DOE said in a Sept. 2 press release. […]

Constellation has appointed Chris Mudrick as its chief nuclear officer, effective Sept. 29.  Mudrick, who currently serves as Constellation’s senior vice president of generation growth, will replace Dave Rhoades, who is retiring at the end of the year after serving in the lead nuclear role since 2021. Rhoades has worked at Constellation for more than […]

Here are events related to nuclear matters that Exchange Monitor staff are tracking: September 10: Hybrid meeting: The DOE Site-Specific Advisory Board for the Nevada National Security Site meets starting at 4 p.m. Pacific Time at Molasky Corporate Center, 15th Floor Conference Room, 100 North City Parkway, Las Vegas, Nevada 89106. 16: Meeting: The Portsmouth […]

The Department of Energy’s cleanup field office at the Oak Ridge Site intends to modify its current deal with United Cleanup of Oak Ridge (UCOR) for more transuranic waste processing and treatment at the Tennessee complex. “The services include the safe, compliant, and cost-effective operations and maintenance of the Melton Valley Solid Waste Storage Facilities […]

Nuclear power reactors worldwide cranked out a record 2,667 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity during 2024, according to a report released this week by the World Nuclear Association. That is up slightly from the prior high of 2,660 TWh during 2006, according to the report released Monday Sept. 1. The global reactor fleet ran at […]

BWX Technologies and Kairos Power have agreed to work together to explore commercial production of tri-structural isotropic (TRISO) fuel to supply Kairos and other customers. Under the agreement, the joint team will explore opportunities to use Kairos’s TRISO Development Lab at its Albuquerque, N.M. campus, BWXT Innovation Campus in Lynchburg, Va. and BWXT’s existing TRISO […]

The Department of Energy, including its semi-autonomous National Nuclear Security Administration, has taken action to address weaknesses in its unclassified cybersecurity program, according to an August report by the Office of Inspector General. The report, which evaluated the program at 29 DOE locations from January 2024 through May 2025, said that programs and sites, after […]

Democrats on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee voiced concerns Wednesday on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s independence and its ability to ensure nuclear safety. In particular, Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) asked if any commissioners feared being fired by President Donald Trump’s administration if they deemed a reactor design unsafe, or failed to make a […]

Five organizations are being tasked with developing missile prototype designs for the nuclear-armed, sea-launched cruise missile program, according to an emailed press release by the National Security Technology Accelerator. The contracting platform National Security Technology Accelerator (NSTXL), upon inquiry from the Exchange Monitor, said Leidos, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman were awarded as prime […]

The Senate voted Tuesday to proceed with floor debate on its version of the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) this week, with the House to follow next week. The Senate voted 84-to-14 on the motion to invoke cloture, or to initiate the process for a debate on the bill, Tuesday evening. This means the […]

The House Rules Committee Tuesday started taking up rules for debating the House Energy & Water Appropriations bill for fiscal 2026. The measure (H.R. 4553) that passed the House Appropriations Committee in July would provide more than $25 billion for DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) with more money for weapons stockpile modernization and nuclear […]