Publications: Nuclear Energy & Radwaste Monitor

The Department of Energy’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has entered into a partnership this week with the nuclear fusion startup Inertia Enterprises to explore and develop new fusion technology. According to LLNL’s Tuesday press release, the partnership consists of a cooperative research and development agreement focused on laser development and two strategic partnership projects. The […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of Energy Chris Wright said during a House hearing this week that the Department of Energy will lean on its Office of Energy’s Office of Energy Dominance Financing once again to help fund new advanced nuclear projects. During a Wednesday House Appropriations Energy and Water subcommittee hearing on DOE’s fiscal 2027 […]

A South Carolina nuclear advisory panel heard Monday that various feasibility tasks are underway to help a state-owned electric utility decide whether a $2.7 billion investment will be made to complete two partially built nuclear reactors.  The Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Power Station has three units, with only one currently active. The other two were […]

The Department of Energy has completed construction of its National Research Innovation Center’s Demonstration of Microreactor Experiments (DOME) test bed, located at DOE’s Idaho National Laboratory, the agency said last week. DOME is a first-of-a-kind facility that will allow private nuclear companies to test their microreactor technologies. The test bed facility serves to accelerate development, […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued two new final rules under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) meant to streamline environmental review during its licensing processes. The first rule, affirmed on Monday by the Commission, creates a new generic environmental impact statement framework for new reactor technology. NRC said the new setup uses “a technology-neutral […]

The Department of Energy wants $10 million to fund the standalone Office of Fusion in fiscal 2027, according to DOE’s recent budget justification document. DOE said the $10 million request will support the office by providing funding for personnel, travel, advisory and start up assistance. The Office of Fusion will lead DOE in advancing “a […]

The White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy unveiled in a Tuesday memorandum a new initiative focused on the use of nuclear power in space. Within 30 days of the memorandum, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) will create a program to develop a mid-power space reactor with a lunar fission surface power […]

Sens. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Dave McCormick (R-Penn.) have introduced a bill this week that looks to expand the Department of Energy’s ability to accelerate the deployment of advanced nuclear technology The bill, Nuclear Energy Innovation and Deployment Act, was introduced to the Senate on Tuesday. The senators said in the press release that the […]

Nuclear power, as a percentage of electric generation, is expected to remain relatively flat despite the Donald Trump administration’s push to reach 400 gigawatts of nuclear power by 2050, according to an April report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA). EIA’s Annual Energy Outlook 2026 report, published April 8, provides projections through 2050 for all […]

The Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy mishandled the funding and overall development of the Carbon-Free Power Project based near DOE’s Idaho National Laboratory, the DOE Office of Inspector General (OIG) found in a recent audit. In October 2020, the Office of Nuclear Energy issued a 10-year, $1.36 billion award to Carbon-Free Power Project […]

Fluor has signed an agreement to support X-Energy’s small modular reactor project at Dow’s UCC Seadrift Operations in Seadrift, Texas. Under the contract, Fluor will provide Front-End Loading Stage 2 services for the project, according to the company’s Monday press release. There are five stages to the Front-End Loading process, Fluor said. Stage 2 focuses […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff this week recommended NRC issue a construction permit allowing the Tennessee Valley Authority to build a small modular reactor (SMR) at the Clinch River site in Oak Ridge, Tenn. In the final supplemental environmental impact statement, published Monday in the Federal Register, NRC staff recommended issuing the permit to TVA, […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has received an application from Westinghouse this week that seeks to update and renew its AP1000 reactor design certification to support fleet-scale deployment. The Westinghouse application incorporates lessons learned from the construction of Vogtle 3 and 4 units into the design control documentation and uses Vogtle Unit 4 as its standard […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission on April 2 renewed the operating licenses for Pacific Gas & Electric Company’s Diablo Canyon Units 1 and 2 in San Luis Obispo County, Calif. Diablo Canyon’s Unit 1 operating license will now expire in November 2044 and Unit 2 in August 2045. PG&E filed for an NRC license renewal in […]

Nearly half of the states have sprung to respond to the Department of Energy’s Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus request for information by the April 1 deadline. An industry source told Exchange Monitor on Thursday that 25 to 28 states submitted a response to DOE, with a handful of them taking an interest in managing nuclear […]

The Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy awarded $49.7 million across 10 university-led projects seeking to grow nuclear safety training. DOE’s new Nuclear Reactor Safety Training and Workforce Development Program will provide up to $100 million in funding to support nuclear workforce development. All the selected university-led projects are responsible for a 50% cost […]

Energy Capital Partners, a multi-billion-dollar energy-focused investment firm, will re-acquire EnergySolutions from TriArtisan Capital Advisors for an undisclosed price, the companies said this week. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected to close this year. EnergySolutions said in a press release. The investment firm said the decision to buy EnergySolutions again […]

Lynchburg, Va.-based BWX Technologies (BWXT) said Tuesday it plans to apply for a uranium enrichment license to build a new defense nuclear facility in Erwin, Tenn.  The nuclear fuel company notified the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) so the agency can prepare to review the application, which BWXT will submit during the first quarter of calendar […]

New York-based NANO Nuclear has filed a construction permit application with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for its KRONOS microreactor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in Champaign, Ill. The Grainger College of Engineering at the university formally submitted the application, NANO Nuclear said in an April 2 press release. The application was filed March 31. […]

Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) has introduced legislation to codify into law President Donald Trump’s May 23, 2025 nuclear-related executive orders. The bill, Strengthening American Nuclear Energy Act of 2026, looks to make last year’s executive actions into law to protect the pro-nuclear policy from being undone via executive orders from future presidents, according to the […]

The Department of Energy approved Antares Nuclear’s documented safety analysis for its test reactor, Mark-0, under DOE’s reactor pilot program, the company said this week.  The documented safety analysis marks the acceptance of Antares’s final design for its Mark-0 reactor. The company now enters the DOE’s readiness review process, which is the final phase of […]

The Department of Energy is requesting $1.53 billion for its Office of Nuclear Energy in fiscal 2027, a slight funding reduction, despite the Donald Trump administration’s push for more nuclear power. The $1.53 billion request outlined in DOE’s fiscal 2027 budget justification document represents a $151 million or 9% budget cut from fiscal 2026, which […]

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) CEO Don Moul is set to retire from the federally-owned utility July 1, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing submitted this week. Moul became the president and CEO of TVA in April 2025 after then-CEO Jeff Lyash retired. His tenure will come to a close after nearly one […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued a proposed rule to create an additional licensing path for the Department of Energy and Pentagon demonstration reactors seeking commercial use. NRC said in a Monday press release that within its new rule it will look to leverage design information from the DOE and Department of Defense reactor demonstrations […]

While the United Steel Workers (USW) union supports advanced nuclear projects for its members, it wants to ensure that employee health and safety remain protected at advanced reactor projects That’s the gist of supplemental comments filed with the Department of Energy in March by the union. “USW represents workers across the Department of Energy nuclear […]

Executives with advanced reactor companies sounded upbeat during a Tuesday webinar on their projects chances of reaching criticality by Independence Day under the Department of Energy’s reactor pilot program. Officials from Aalo Atomics, Antares Nuclear and Radiant Nuclear all expressed optimism during an American Nuclear Society panel discussion webinar titled “Path to Criticality.” DOE’s reactor […]

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched Artemis II this week, beginning its string of upcoming lunar missions. NASA’s Artemis II 10-day, four person mission is to verify Orion spacecraft and systems that are designed to travel into deep space with people on board. The mission involves circling around the moon before heading back […]