Publications: Nuclear Security & Deterrence Monitor

Staff Reports NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 The National Nuclear Security Administration has ordered new Y-12 contractor Consolidated Nuclear Security to dig deeper into a series of abnormal events over the past couple of years, assess whether there are any systemic issues that have been missed or undocumented and come up with a path forward that will […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 House lawmakers are pushing back action on a short-term Continuing Resolution necessary to keep funding the federal government at the start of Fiscal Year 2015 as the President this week requested that authorization to take action against ISIS in Iraq and Syria be included in the CR. The CR would […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 It doesn’t appear that Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Plutonium Facility will be fully operational any time soon, according to information released this week. Work at the facility was shut down in June  2013, with only partial operations having resumed, and National Nuclear Security Administration Acting Associate Administrator for Infrastructure and […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 After the expiration of the current five-year Future Years Defense Program (FYDP), ongoing development of the long-range strike bomber (LRS-B) and replacement of 14 Ohio-class submarines could cause a significant dent in the post-Fiscal Year 2019 defense budget, according to a report by Todd Harrison, senior fellow of defense budget […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 U.S. and Russian officials made no progress in talks late this week about accusations that Russia has violated the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, according to a statement from the U.S. State Department. The U.S. delegation, led by Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Rose Gottemoeller, traveled […]

Mike Nartker NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall—the Obama Administration’s choice to serve as the new No. 2 official in DOE—this week joined the lengthy list of DOE nominees awaiting full confirmation by the Senate. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee approved Sherwood-Randall’s nomination to serve as the next Deputy Secretary of Energy by a […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 The NATO Wales Summit ended late last week with no change to the alliance’s nuclear posture. Deep within the summit declaration was language mirroring previous statements in NATO’s 2012 Deterrence and Defense Posture Review and 2010 Strategic Concept indicating that the alliance will remain nuclear as long as nuclear weapons […]

Staff Reports NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 The Department of Energy’s national labs need to open to up to small and medium businesses in their locales and make a bigger impact on regional economies, spreading the wealth of their expertise and research missions, according to a new study by the Brookings Institution. The report, titled, “Going Local: […]

‘Leda’ Hydrodynamic Experiment Conducted Successfully NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 Los Alamos National Laboratory recently completed a successful hydrodynamic experiment at the Nevada National Security Site, with scientists involved in the experiment reporting that the test had produced a significant amount of data that will aid the Stockpile Stewardship Program. The test, nicknamed “Leda,” was conducted Aug. […]

NS&D Monitor 9/12/2014 IN THE INDUSTRY Canadian firm WSP Global has reached a deal to purchase Parsons Brinckerhoff from parent company Balfour Beatty for approximately $1.35 billion. The deal, announced last week, entails an enterprise value of approximately $1.24 billion and a “cash consideration” of up to $110 million, according to a release. The terms […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 Three former generals are advocating continued U.S. compliance to the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty despite allegations that Russia violated the agreement by testing its R-500 cruise missile. The INF Treaty prohibits ground-launched cruise and ballistic missiles with ranges from 500 to 5,000 kilometers. In a piece published last week  in […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 With Russian President Vladimir Putin increasingly emphasizing Moscow’s nuclear firepower amid growing tensions with the United States over Ukraine, nuclear weapons experts suggested this week that Russia’s nuclear bluster could provide more ammunition to supporters of modernizing the U.S. nuclear stockpile and weapons complex. Speaking Aug. 29 at a youth […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 Lawmakers are expected to return from their summer recess next week and passing a Continuing Resolution to fund the government at the start of Fiscal Year 2015 will be among the top priorities. But lawmakers are expected to strive for a short-term “clean” CR—that is, one devoid of many policy […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 Later this month, the Army Corps of Engineers will turn over the High Explosives Pressing Facility to Pantex contractor Consolidated Nuclear Security, kicking off an extensive testing and readiness period that is expected to last another two years. But there is hope, among both the National Nuclear Security Administration and […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 The Department of Energy’s Office of Enforcement is investigating a potential security violation at the Y-12 National Security Complex that occurred just before new Y-12/Pantex contractor Consolidated Nuclear Security took over management of the facilities. In a Sept. 3 letter to CNS President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Haynes, Office […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board is calling on the Department of Energy to strengthen its emergency response capabilities and this week issued its first formal recommendation in nearly two years. The recommendation was prompted, in part, by DOE’s response to a truck fire and radioactive material release at the […]

Mike Nartker NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 Senior URS executive Randy Wotring will head up AECOM’s work in the federal marketplace, including in the Department of Energy, once it completes its acquisition of URS, according to information released earlier this week. AECOM and URS outlined the planned management structure of their combined organization in messages to employees. […]

Brian Bradley NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 The Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center expects to release a Request for Proposal for new reentry system testing equipment this fall, according to AFNWC spokesperson Kendahl Johnson. The information was released this week as industry gathered at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico for an industry day for the […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 Former Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore Director Mike Anastasio is joining the Boards of Governors of both contractors that run the two national laboratories. Anastasio retired as the director of Los Alamos in 2011 after leading the lab for five years, and he spent three years as Livermore’s director from […]

Lab, Former NIF Director Ed Moses, Part Ways NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and former National Ignition Facility Director Ed Moses are officially parting ways, with Moses accepting a job as the president of the Giant Magellan Telescope Organization. Moses was the director of NIF through its conception, construction and early operations, serving […]

New Criticality Safety Issues Pop Up at Y-12 NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 Staff of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board recently identified several new criticality safety concerns at the Y-12 National Security Complex, which is under increased scrutiny because of the age of the plant’s production facilities. Such concerns include casting of slugs of highly enriched […]

MOX Services Looks to Extend NRC Construction Authorization for 10 Years NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility contractor CB&I AREVA MOX Services is awaiting a response to its request for a 10-year extension to its construction authorization from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Currently the NRC’s construction authorization expires on March 30, 2015, but […]

NS&D Monitor 9/5/2014 IN DOE The Congressionally mandated Commission to Review the Effectiveness of the National Energy Laboratories is scheduled to hold its second meeting Sept. 15. The meeting will take place from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Institute for Defense Analyses in Alexandria, Va., and will include a review of previous studies […]

Staff Reports NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 Fiscal Year 2015 is still a month away, but Consolidated Nuclear Security is making preparations for what’s likely to come: a Continuing Resolution. CNS, the managing contractor for the Y-12 and Pantex nuclear production facilities, issued preliminary guidance to employees this week to help get fiscally ready. “CNS expects to […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 The first phase of Los Alamos National Laboratory’s new strategy to upgrade its plutonium facilities will cost about $2 billion, according to a new cost estimate approved last week by Deputy Energy Secretary Dan Poneman as part of a Critical Decision-1 approval of the project. Poneman signed off on the […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 KANSAS CITY, Mo.—The Department of Energy appears to be on the verge of making a decision on whether or not to compete the Kansas City Plant contract, but Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz gave little sense of the path forward in comments here late last week. Speaking on the sidelines of […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 KANSAS CITY, Mo.—National Nuclear Security Administration chief Frank Klotz said here late last week that he plans to reinvigorate plans to employ the Kansas City governance model more broadly across the weapons complex after efforts to implement the model stalled out in recent years. During a visit to the new […]

Todd Jacobson NS&D Monitor 8/29/2014 Sandia National Laboratories may have trouble meeting neutron generator production requirements in the future, according to a Department of Energy Inspector General report released this week. The audit report calls into question Sandia’s ability to ramp up neutron generator production as requirements for the key nuclear weapons component increase 50 […]