Publications: Nuclear Security & Deterrence Monitor

The Department of Energy’s semiautonomous National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) on Wednesday released its final site-wide environmental impact statement and its record of decision to implement an “expanded operations alternative” at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. “Expanded operations” means exactly what it sounds like: all activities at Los Alamos will continue as they […]

Adm. Richard Correll, commander of the U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM), said Thursday the Navy has a plan to extend the lifespan of the Ohio-class nuclear-powered submarines to “bridge” the gap as its replacement Columbia-class endures delays. Correll, in testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee on STRATCOM’s posture for fiscal 2027, was responding to a […]

Major construction has concluded on a key security modernization effort at the Y-12 National Security Complex, with federal officials emphasizing cost savings and operational efficiencies tied to a significantly smaller high-security footprint. The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) said the West End Protected Area Reduction (WEPAR) project achieved full beneficial occupancy on Feb. 24, marking […]

Christine Wormuth, chief executive officer of Washington think tank Nuclear Threat Initiative, said in a Thursday webinar a ground operation to seize Iran’s enriched uranium would be “extraordinarily complicated.” For the past couple of weeks, there have been reports the Donald Trump administration is considering deploying troops to secure the speculated 440 kilograms, or near […]

The Department of Energy is inviting teams from national laboratories, domestic industry, and universities to submit proposals as part of a $293-million requisition for application (RFA) being issued as part of the Genesis Mission. DOE said in a Tuesday press release it is inviting submissions for “The Genesis Mission: Transforming Science and Energy with AI […]

A projectile near Iran’s Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant reactor “hit and destroyed” a structure 350 meters away Tuesday night, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency on X. “Although there was no damage to the reactor itself nor injuries to staff, any attack at or near nuclear power plants violates the seven indispensable pillars related […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration has released its fiscal 2025 Performance Evaluation Reports, with contractors across the nuclear security enterprise largely earning “Excellent” or “Very Good” ratings and award fees near or above 90%. The evaluations highlight strong execution of stockpile stewardship and modernization programs, while continuing to flag risks related to aging infrastructure, workforce […]

Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), ranking member of the Senate Armed Forces Committee, demanded a report by the Pentagon summarizing total war costs of Operation Epic Fury, or the Donald Trump administration and Israel’s combat operations in Iran. “I will not support a blank check for this war of choice,” Reed said on the Senate floor […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration was to conduct low-altitude helicopter flights March 16 through March 19 over the Perry Nuclear Power Plant in Perry, Ohio, the agency said in an email last week. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission last July extended the operating license for the Vistra Corp. nuclear plant by 20 years.  The NNSA’s aerial […]

The United States should embrace a clear policy condemning military attacks on international  nuclear power plants, a senior think tank official said at a hearing Monday. Earlier this month the United States was one of only four countries that opposed a resolution for the International Atomic Energy Agency [IAEA] Board of Governors that expressed concern […]

The Pentagon’s fiscal year 2027 budget request is coming “relatively soon,” a senior official said last week, saying it will outline a “generational investment in the joint force.” After last year’s delayed budget rollout that irked Congress, Jay Hurst III, the department’s acting comptroller, said the forthcoming request will offer a greater level of initial […]

Discussions continue about opening a second production line for the B-21, the U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM) head said on Tuesday at a hearing of the House Armed Services Committee’s (HASC) strategic forces panel. Former STRATCOM commander Gen. Anthony Cotton has said the service needs around 145 Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider stealth bombers–at least 45 more […]

Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, the management and operating contractor at the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) Savannah River Site, established the Office of Innovation in September, the prime said in a press release Wednesday. The Office of Innovation will be a dedicated hub for research and technology at Savannah River Site and will craft a […]

The head of U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM) acknowledged ongoing challenges with the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent replacement program, emphasizing the need to carefully balance testing demands with the realities of an aging legacy system. During a recent House Armed Services Committee hearing, Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.) pressed STRATCOM Commander Adm. Richard Correll on how the […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The United States needs to reestablish a robust domestic uranium enrichment program in order to meet future nuclear goals, Department of Energy Assistant Secretary of Nuclear Energy Ted Garrish said here Thursday. “When I first came onboard, I recognized this really is the biggest risk to the nuclear industry,” Garrish said of […]

The Department of Energy’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad, N.M., has completed an annual maintenance outage that started in January, while managers plan an even longer one next year.  The outage that ran from Jan. 5 through March 13 is finished and the underground disposal site for defense-related transuranic waste is once again […]

Fresh out of a classified briefing Tuesday on Operation Epic Fury, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations committee, posted on X saying the war goals “DO NOT” involve destroying Iran’s nuclear weapons program. “This is, uh…surprising…since Trump says over and over this is a key goal,” Murphy continued in his […]

Fresh out of a classified briefing Tuesday on Operation Epic Fury, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations committee, posted on X saying the war goals “DO NOT” involve destroying Iran’s nuclear weapons program. “This is, uh…surprising…since Trump says over and over this is a key goal,” Murphy continued in his […]

The Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina is restarting HB-Line operations in order to recycle surplus plutonium and produce uranium-plutonium mixed oxide (MOX) fuel for advanced reactors. DOE announced the restart in a Friday March 6 press release. It did not reveal a specific date for the restart driven by President Donald […]

PHOENIX — Installation of two major infrastructure projects at Department of Energy’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plan in New Mexico ended up costing about $770 million due to the pandemic, replacement of a major subcontractor and other factors, officials said here Wednesday. The cost of the Safety Significant Confinement Ventilation System (SSCVS), renamed the Underground Ventilation […]

PHOENIX – The land-constrained Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory near San Francisco, Calif. must demolish decaying old buildings covering a third of its footprint over the next 16 years, Livermore manager Mark Costella said here Tuesday. Livermore’s main Department of Energy National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) campus takes up only one square mile, Costella said. As […]

PHOENIX— A Genesis consortium of public, private partnerships has already identified more than two dozen national science challenges, Kristen Ellis, a longtime DOE supervisor who is currently the associate principal deputy undersecretary for science, said here Tuesday. The Genesis Mission is designed to be a joint effort by industry and the Department of Energy’s national […]

The Donald Trump administration is considering deploying troops on the ground in Iran to secure the country’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium (HEU), news reports say. “People are going to have to go and get it,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said at a Congressional briefing Tuesday about securing Tehran’s stockpile of uranium.  Other news […]

The ranking member of the House Armed Services Seapower and Projected Forces subcommittee in a Tuesday letter further pushed the Defense Department to award an overdue multi-year contract covering up to 11 Block VI Virginia-class attack submarines. Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) has been pushing DoD to award the contract that was authorized in the fiscal […]

The annual outage at the Department of Energy’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico should end in the coming week, following significant replacement work and upgrades to infrastructure that a watchdog deemed “substandard or inadequate.”  “The annual winter maintenance outage began on Jan. 5 this year and is scheduled to end in mid-March, […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) greenlighted the start of full construction, or Critical Decision 2/3, for the High-Fidelity Training and Operations Center (HFTOC) at Savannah River Site. The HFTOC will function as a training facility, or a mock facility, for the Savannah River Plutonium Processing Facility’s Main Processing Building, according to a Monday press […]

The president of General Dynamics Electric Boat division on Wednesday said a multi-year contract to procure 15 nuclear-powered submarines is still months away while also providing an update on lowering shipyard attrition rates and the utility of outsourcing. The Navy has been negotiating the deal with General Dynamics and Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) on awards […]