Publications: Nuclear Energy & Radwaste Monitor

President Donald Trump has nominated several officials to lead key Department of Energy branches serving nuclear energy and the weapons complex, and some are making progress through the confirmation process.  The nominees would report to the already confirmed Secretary of Energy Chris Wright. Exchange Monitor will update the nominees’ progress from time to time. James […]

The Tennessee Valley Authority plans to submit a construction permit application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a small modular reactor at the Clinch River nuclear site in Oak Ridge, Tenn. by June 2025. The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) informed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in an April 17 letter of notification of intent. TVA […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Christopher Hanson, commissioner for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, said Monday he does not know where the future of the agency stands under the current Donald Trump administration, the executive order threatening diluting power, and the current lawsuit against the agency. “I don’t know,” Hanson said with a laugh in answer to a […]

Sam Altman, co-founder and chief executive officer of OpenAI, is stepping down as chairman of the board of nuclear power company Oklo, according to a company statement Wednesday. Jacob DeWitte, Oklo CEO and co-founder, will serve as chairman and board member in Altman’s place. “As Oklo explores strategic partnerships to deploy clean energy at scale, […]

White House director of the office of science and technology policy Michael Kratsios has called for a restoration in American Innovation in the science and technology industry. Kratsios, who was confirmed by the Senate in March, recently spoke at the Endless Frontiers Retreat in Austin, Texas on April 14. In his first public statement since […]

The Department of Energy said on Tuesday it is awarding Holtec its third loan reimbursement worth $46.7 million to support the company’s efforts to restart the Palisades nuclear plant. The loan comes as another installment of the DOE’s $1.52 billion loan guarantee for the restart of Palisades, an 800 megawatt plant in Michigan. Last month, […]

Uranium Energy Corp ( CEO, founder and president Amir Adnani has been appointed to the World Nuclear Association’s Board of Management. “It’s an honor to join the WNA [World Nuclear Association] Board of Management at such a pivotal time for our industry,” Adnani stated in a Uranium Energy Corp (UEC) press release from April 17. […]

TerraPower has taken its first steps in the regulatory process for its advanced nuclear reactor in the United Kingdom. TerraPower, backed by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, announced in an April 16 press release that it has submitted a letter to the U.K. Department of Energy Security and Net Zero establishing its intention to enter the […]

Orano USA and Curio announced on April 9 to have agreed to a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to partner up to create a new pathway in advanced nuclear fuel management. Orano USA, based in Maryland, and Curio, based in Washington D.C., both specialize in nuclear technology centered around nuclear waste management.  Through the MOU, Orano […]

House Democratic leaders of the Energy and Commerce committee demanded answers from Secretary of Energy Chris Wright on the effects of mass firing at DOE. The letter, released April 14, was signed by full committee ranking member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-N.J.), Energy subcommittee ranking member Kathy Castor (D-Fla.), and Oversight and Investigations subcommittee ranking member […]

EnergySolutions announced in a Tuesday press release it was awarded two government contracts that assist in nuclear waste management across prominent Naval sites in the United States. The Utah-based nuclear company was awarded new U.S. Navy Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contracts that support waste management operations across numerous Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program sites. IDIQ […]

The city of Oak Ridge, Tenn., is studying alternative sites for a municipal airport with land cleaned up by the Department of Energy now earmarked by Orano USA for a major uranium enrichment project. Although a local airport has been long sought by the city of Oak Ridge, Exchange Monitor reported in October 2024 it […]

A federal judge in Massachusetts has issued a temporary restraining order on Wednesday blocking the Department of Energy’s new policy that would reduce universities research grant funds to 15%. U.S. district judge Allison Burroughs granted the order and allowed for DOE to appeal by April 22. A hearing for the motion is scheduled at 11:00 […]

Ohio lawmakers sent a letter to Secretary of Energy Chris Wright asking that he award “a majority share” of any funds appropriated to the Department of Energy toward Centrus Energy’s American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon, Ohio. The letter was signed by Gov. Mike DeWine (R), Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel (R), and Sens. Bernie Moreno (R) […]

BWX Technologies announced Tuesday it acquired 97 acres of land in Oak Ridge, Tenn. with the goal of rebuilding domestic uranium enrichment capabilities by manufacturing centrifuges. According to the emailed press release, the land acquisition would support DOE and its semi-autonomous National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) deployment of Domestic Uranium Enrichment Centrifuge Experiment (DUECE) technology. […]

A coalition of five states and three private nuclear companies filed a lawsuit against the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on April 7 in a federal district court in Texas.  Arizona, Florida, Louisiana, Texas and Utah joined with advanced nuclear companies Deep Fission, Valar Atomics and Last Energy in arguing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has inhibited […]

A GE Hitachi Nuclear-led research team successfully tested new building blocks that could potentially reduce the cost of nuclear construction. In 2021, the Department of Energy (DOE) partnered up with GE Hitachi to develop three construction technologies that can collectively reduce the cost of new nuclear builds by around 10%. Through the initiative, GE Hitachi […]

Vincent Ialenti announced his resignation from the Department of Energy in a post on his LinkedIn profile. Ialenti worked in the DOE’s Office of Spent Fuel and High-Level Waste Disposition and was the federal manager of the agency’s Consent-Based Siting Consortia. According to his LinkedIn profile, he has worked for the agency since August 2022. […]

Amentum was selected by ČEZ, an energy utility based in the Czech Republic, to support its new nuclear program by advancing plans for two small modular reactors (SMR), as stated in an April 8 press release. Amentum, based in Chantilly, VA, will be tasked to deliver two environmental impact assessment (EIA) reports regarding the proposals […]

The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission issued its first construction license to an Ontario company to build a small modular reactor on April 4. Ontario Power Generation Inc. will construct a General Electric Hitachi BWRX-300 reactor at its Darlington New Nuclear Project site located in Clarington, Canada. The company expects the construction will be completed by […]

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 […]

A Nuclear Regulatory Commission advisory committee recently discussed how NRC  can better navigate the growing market for the medical use of isotopes. At NRC’s April 8 meeting, nuclear pharmacist Richard Green said the global market for theranostics, a branch of nuclear medicine that combines diagnostic imaging with targeted therapy using radioactive isotopes, is forecast to […]

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 2-1 vote. 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 […]

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. A Deep Isolation […]

Duke Energy has filed an application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a second license renewal for its Robinson Nuclear Plant in Hartville, S.C., the company said this week.  Robinson Nuclear Plant began operating in 1971 and has one unit, a pressurized-water reactor, that generates 759 megawatts. It is also the first commercial nuclear plant […]

The Department of Energy has conditionally agreed to provide five companies with high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) for advanced nuclear projects.  The five companies awarded are: Kairos Power based in California; Radiant Industries based in California;  TerraPower based in Washington state; TRISO-X, a Tennessee-based nuclear fuel subsidiary of X-Energy; and, Westinghouse Electric based in Pennsylvania. HALEU […]

With the influx of microreactors applications, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission navigates the possibility of a six-month licensing process for microreactor deployments. Nuclear Energy Institute executive director Marc Nichol discussed the ways the NRC could consider trimming its regulatory processes in an effort to speed up advanced nuclear deployment at the NRC’s Thursday meeting.  With microreactors […]