Publications: Nuclear Security & Deterrence Monitor

The Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant was reconnected to external power June 13 after repairs to a damaged backup transmission line were completed under a localized ceasefire brokered by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the agency said on X. The plant lost connection to its 330-kilovolt Ferosplavna backup power line late June 11 due to […]

The Senate Armed Services Committee’s (SASC) fiscal 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) would authorize over $41 billion for Department of Energy national security programs while advancing provisions tied to nuclear weapons programs. SASC has been marking up its version of the defense policy bill in closed hearings this week, and on Thursday released the […]

Defense materials company ATI announced Thursday it has signed a new five-year strategic material supply agreement with nuclear fuel company BWX Technologies (BWXT), extending a long-standing partnership supporting the U.S. Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program through fiscal 2030.  The agreement is intended to ensure a steady supply of specialty materials used in reactor systems for the […]

The House Appropriations Defense subcommittee (HAC-D) Thursday advanced its $1.07 trillion defense spending bill for fiscal 2027, which funds nuclear-related programs at the Pentagon such as the nuclear triad and the delivery systems that carry nuclear warheads. The bill, which aligns with the Donald Trump administration’s requested discretionary spending level, will be marked up by […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Legislation to accelerate licensing for domestic uranium enrichment is critical in building nuclear reactors at scale, panelists told the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Energy subcommittee Tuesday. During the House subcommittee hearing, the panelists discussed and reviewed six proposed pieces of nuclear energy-related legislation that subcommittee members said are aimed to further […]

Los Alamos National Laboratory updated its sitewide seismic hazard analysis and is expected to influence future facility design, safety-basis evaluations and infrastructure projects supporting the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) nuclear weapons mission. According to a Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) report from May 22, the updated probabilistic seismic hazard analysis was recently approved […]

The International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) Board of Governors Wednesday approved a U.S.-backed resolution directing Iran to provide a full accounting of its enriched uranium stockpiles and grant inspectors access needed to verify the material’s status. The measure passed the 35-nation board by a vote of 21-3, with 10 abstentions, according to AI-Monitor. Russia, China […]

Two top GOP senators on the Senate Appropriations Committee are opposing a third reconciliation bill, both said during a hearing on the Air Force’s budget Tuesday. The Trump administration’s total $1.5 trillion fiscal 2027 defense request is split between $1.15 trillion in discretionary spending and $350 billion the White House has said it will seek […]

President Donald Trump’s special envoys for Iran, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, reportedly consulted nuclear experts at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge, Tenn. to prepare for a nuclear deal with Iran, according to Axios. The article also said the White House is trying to reach a memorandum of understanding with Iran to end […]

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) head Rafael Grossi urged Iran to cooperate with the agency, warning inspectors remain unable to verify the status of Tehran’s enriched uranium stockpiles a year after U.S.-Israeli military strikes damaged key nuclear facilities. Addressing the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors this week, Grossi called on Iran to […]

The defense ministers of the three AUKUS partners last week announced Australia will now exclusively buy used American Virginia-class attack submarines (SSNs). According to a joint statement released by the U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and the British and Australian defense ministers John Healey and Richard Marles, respectively, the three welcomed a proposed approach […]

The House Armed Services Committee’s (HASC) rejected an amendment to the fiscal 2027 defense authorization bill to cut funding for the new Trump-class battleship but did agree to a report on how the Navy will manage another nuclear-powered vessel. During the full committee markup last week, ranking member Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) offered an amendment […]

Chantilly, Va.-based Amentum said Thursday it has been awarded a contract by Fluor-led Savannah River Nuclear Solutions to provide design and engineering services for the Tritium Finishing Facility Project at the Savannah River Site. Amentum’s Thursday press release did not reveal the value of the contract. “As a trusted partner to the National Nuclear Security […]

The House Armed Services Committee passed its version of the fiscal 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) at midnight Thursday after debating around 900 amendments all day Thursday, several of which pertained to nuclear issues. The defense policy bill, which also sets spending caps for the appropriations bills, would authorize $32.76 billion in funding for […]

The House Armed Services Committee Thursday voted 44-12 to advance the fiscal 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would authorize $32.76 billion in funding for the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). That is just a little less than the White House requested for fiscal 2027 at $32.80 billion, and almost $7 […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) is starting work on a new facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) that the agency says will strengthen U.S. capabilities to monitor foreign uranium enrichment activities and support nuclear nonproliferation missions. The Advanced Testbed and Operations Learning Laboratory, or ATOLL, will be a 21,000-square-foot facility designed to develop […]

Tetra Tech has been awarded a contract valued at nearly $1.8 million to assist the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) in developing federal environmental policy documents. The work involves technical support services for National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance for site-wide document development for NNSA’s Office of Environment, Safety, and Health, according […]

Years after an agreement apparently resolved a federal safety watchdog’s access to staff and records at Department of Energy nuclear sites, the dispute appears to be back. In an April 29 letter to Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board’s (DNFSB) lone member said DOE is not complying with its Atomic […]

As part of its efforts to remove high-risk radioactive material from the world, the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) said Friday it has taken the last cesium-137 blood irradiator from Lebanon. It is an important milestone, NNSA said in a Friday May 29 press release. That’s because the cesium inside these medical […]

The version of the fiscal 2027 Energy & Water Development bill recently voted out of the House Appropriations Committee endorses key Department of Energy projects getting underway at the Hanford Site in Richland, Wash and the Savannah River Site near Aiken, S.C. At Savannah River Site (SRS) DOE is directed to brief the House Appropriations […]

Fluor Marine Propulsion has been awarded a $1.03 billion contract modification to continue work supporting the Navy’s nuclear propulsion enterprise at the Naval Nuclear Laboratory, according to a Defense Department contract announcement Tuesday. The cost-plus-fixed-fee modification, awarded under an existing naval propulsion contract, provides funding for naval nuclear propulsion work performed through the Naval Nuclear […]

The Y-12 National Security Complex has completed its fiscal 2026 uranium casting production for the Naval Reactors program ahead of schedule and, according to a Wednesday announcement from the site. Y-12 produced 175 uranium castings during the fiscal year, which provided enriched uranium feedstock used in the fuel supply chain for the U.S. Navy’s nuclear-powered […]

The president of the 2026 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference says continued engagement among the five recognized nuclear-weapon states is critical to reducing risks and preserving prospects for future arms control progress amid growing geopolitical tensions. Speaking at the Arms Control Association’s annual meeting, Vietnam’s United Nations Ambassador Do Hung Viet said disagreements among […]

The Department of Energy is reviewing roughly 80 internal orders under an initiative called “Project Velocity” aimed at accelerating work across the nuclear weapons enterprise, Los Alamos National Laboratory Deputy Director for Mission Operations Mark Davis said last month. Speaking before the Los Alamos County Council, Davis said the effort is intended to streamline operations […]

About 81 million pounds of rubble have been cleared away from the two-acre footprint of the former Alpha-2 building site at the Y-12 National Security Complex at the Oak Ridge Site in Tennessee, the Department of Energy said Tuesday. That amounts to about 3,500 truckloads of debris being hauled away from the former uranium enrichment […]

Los Alamos National Laboratory Deputy Director for Mission Operations Mark Davis said this month the U.S. nuclear weapons enterprise is entering a “fourth age of deterrence,” marking a shift from post-Cold War stewardship toward large-scale modernization and production. Speaking May 5 before the Los Alamos County Council, Davis described the current era as one driven […]

A key environmental document and Record of Decision (ROD) issued Thursday by the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) clears the way for expanding operations for Sandia National Laboratories over the next 15 years. The “expanded operations alternative” endorsed the NNSA’s final Site-Wide Environmental Impact Statement and ROD should allow Sandia to build […]