Publications: ExchangeMonitor Morning Briefing

Texas lawmakers have proposed a bill that promotes advanced nuclear deployment across the state. House Bill 14, authored by Texas Rep. Cody Harris (R), would create the Texas Advanced Nuclear Deployment Office and Texas Advanced Nuclear Energy Program. Harris proposed $2 billion to fund the deployment office. The state House’s State Affairs Committee passed the […]

The House Armed Services Strategic Forces subcommittee will hear from Gen. Anthony Cotton, commander of the U.S. Strategic Command, and others on the country’s strategic forces posture for fiscal 2026. Cotton, the military’s top uniformed nuclear official, is one of four witnesses to testify Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. Eastern time in Rayburn House Office Building, […]

Russia will obtain licenses to operate, and potentially restart, all units of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine by 2027, plant director Yuri Chernichuk recently told Russian-owned news source Strana Rosatom. Chernichuk told Strana Rosatom, which is owned by Russian state-owned nuclear energy corporation Rosatom that has occupied Zaporizhzhia since 2022, Rosatom will need […]

A company promoting deep borehole technology for nuclear waste has announced plans to work with a company developing plans for underground nuclear reactors, according to a press release.  Deep Isolation has agreed in a memorandum of understanding to collaborate in the management of  spent nuclear fuel from Deep Fission’s advanced underground reactors. Deep Fission, a […]

With key Democrats denouncing any possible mass firings at the Department of Energy, the deadline is before midnight Tuesday for DOE staff to opt into the latest round of voluntary buyouts. Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) said Friday they are troubled by reports by Associated Press and other media of possible […]

Two organizations serving the Department of Energy’s weapons complex, one a multibillion-dollar contractor and the other a non-profit research entity, will soon reduce staff levels at offices in Virginia. Reston, Va.-based Leidos, which has several DOE contracts and leads a partnership providing services at the Hanford Site in Washington state, will be cutting its northern […]

The Senate Armed Services Committee will hear testimony Tuesday morning from President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Energy’s semi-autonomous National Nuclear Security Administration. Brandon Williams, the administration’s nominee to be undersecretary of energy for nuclear security, is one of four nominees scheduled to testify during a confirmation hearing Tuesday to start at […]

A three-judge panel for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Atomic Safety and Licensing Board denied the requested hearing challenging plans to restart the Palisades Nuclear Plant in Michigan. In a 71-page ruling made on March 31, the NRC Atomic Safety and Licensing Board stated, “we conclude that Joint Petitioners and Petitioning Organizations have demonstrated standing to […]

Here are events related to nuclear matters that Exchange Monitor staff are tracking: 08: Hearing: Senate Armed Services holds a confirmation hearing on National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) nominee Brandon Williams starting at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time..  16: Meeting: The Energy Technology and Environmental Business Association kicks off a two-day meeting on New Mexico Federal […]

The area around the Department of Energy’s Paducah Site in western Kentucky was facing a flood warning Sunday evening. The flood warning was in effect until 7 p.m. Central Time, according to the National Weather Service forecast. Some minor flooding was already occurring and moderate flooding was forecast around the Ohio River in Paducah, according […]

The Department of Energy is seeking feedback on how 16 installations, mostly in the weapons complex, stack up as potential spots to develop artificial intelligence data centers. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Thursday April 3 that DOE is issuing a request for information on how the 16 federal properties might work for permitting and construction […]

John (Jay) Mullis, who recently retired as head of the Department of Energy’s Environmental Management office at the Oak Ridge Site in Tennessee, didn’t stay idle long — he announced in a weekend LinkedIn post he has agreed to become chief nuclear officer for United Cleanup Oak Ridge. “I’m happy to share that I’m starting […]

Reston, Va.,-based Leidos has hired Daryle Lademan as its new senior vice president of corporate strategy, the company announced. Lademan, who reports to Chief Growth Officer Jason Albanese, has three decades of experience across the defense and government technology sectors, Leidos said in a March 31 news release.  Lademan joined Leidos in March, according to […]

Ernest Moniz and Joan Rohlfing, chief executive officer and chief operating officer of Nuclear Threat Initiative respectively, are stepping down from their roles in 2025 with no refills in place yet. According to a Wednesday press release by the Washington-based nonproliferation-focused nonprofit Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), Moniz and Rohlfing messaged the board, staff and partners […]

The CEO of Huntington Ingalls Industries recently downplayed how much impact President Donald Trump ’s 25% aluminum and steel tariffs would have on the shipbuilding supply chain.  Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) CEO Chris Kastner also said adding Australian suppliers to submarine production under the AUKUS agreement will help bolster a fragile supply chain. He argued […]

Orano USA signed a contract with an unidentified nuclear power plant in a Southern state to transfer and store used nuclear fuel onsite. The contract between Maryland-based Orano USA and the nuclear energy facility was announced on Thursday in a press release. The Orano USA spokesperson said the company was not able to disclose the […]

The Donald Trump administration’s pick to be deputy secretary of energy, told a Senate panel Wednesday that if confirmed his focus would be on easing federal regulatory approval for new infrastructure and electricity projects.   In his prepared testimony to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, James Danly also said keeping the Department of Energy’s […]

While plans for new nuclear units have garnered a lot of interest lately, challenges including workforce, public perception and licensing still dictate when the projects can deploy, according to panelists in an Energy Communities Alliance webinar. The ECA held a webinar “Open for Business – New Nuclear Opportunities” on Wednesday with panelists weighing in on […]

The Department of Energy’s $8-billion Office of Environmental Management last week posted an updated organizational chart that now shows longtime federal supervisor Dae Chung as the acting head of the branch. Chung’s formal title, according to the chart posted March 26, is acting principal deputy assistant secretary. Chung was made the acting chief a few […]

The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board said Pantex management and operating contractor PanTeXas Deterrence reported a loss of power in nuclear explosive bays the week of March 7. The Pantex Plant near Amarillo, Texas, is a National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) site that services all U.S. nuclear weapons in assembly and disassembly, and also houses […]

Texas-based Fluor has promoted a long-time company manager, Tracey Cook, to become its new chief human resources officer effective April 7. Cook is succeeding Stacy Dillow, who is leaving Fluor to pursue a new opportunity, Fluor said in a Monday press release. Dillow is leaving April 11, according to a filing with the Securities & Exchange […]

To build the equivalent of an annual 500% increase in submarine tonnage from 2004 to now, Adm. William Houston said the Navy is trying to leverage new technology like automated robot inspectors and drone-based monitors. “We now have automated robots to do inspections for us in tanks – that goes ahead and takes tank inspections […]

Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) said Tuesday the U.S. Air Force may be able to re-use some Minuteman III silos to house the future Northrop Grumman LGM-35A Sentinel. Cramer, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee’s strategic forces panel, also said the Air Force is increasingly discussing possible concurrent upgrades to house Sentinel at the […]

The chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee for Energy and Water wants to see the Department of Energy’s nuclear-related programs receive as much money as realistically possible during a period of government cutbacks. “I want to see the most robust budgets that we can — understanding that we are in tight fiscal times,” Rep. Chuck […]

Dow and X-energy Reactor Co. have submitted a construction permit application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a proposed advanced nuclear project in Seadrift, Texas. Long Mott Energy, Dow’s subsidiary, submitted the application on Monday.  Reviewing the application can take up to 30 months, as noted in the Dow and X-Energy press release. If the […]

The Department of Energy has circulated its own Deferred Resignation Plan, akin to the Office of Personnel Management’s earlier “Fork in the Road” initiative, and responses are due Tuesday April 8, according to a Monday memo from Secretary of Energy Chris Wright. The new DOE buyout is spawned by President Donald Trump’s Feb. 11 executive […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved the license renewal for Duke Energy’s Oconee Nuclear Station that will extend its operations for up to an additional 20 years. Oconee, located near Seneca, S.C., is Duke Energy’s largest nuclear plant with a generating capacity of 2,554 megawatts. It has three units, Unit 1 commissioned in 1973 and […]