Publications: Nuclear Energy & Radwaste Monitor

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 […]

Orano USA signed a contract with an unidentified nuclear power plant in a Southern state to transfer and store used nuclear fuel onsite. The contract between Maryland-based Orano USA and the nuclear energy facility was announced on Thursday in a press release. The Orano USA spokesperson said the company was not able to disclose the […]

NRG PALLAS, a research institute based in the Netherlands, has partnered with California-based Kairos Power to evaluate the fuel Kairos’plans to use in small modular reactors. NRG PALLAS announced  the agreement in a March 20 news release. In October 2024, Kairos Power reached an agreement with Google that will allow the company to develop small […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved the license renewal for Duke Energy’s Oconee Nuclear Station that will extend its operations for up to an additional 20 years. Oconee, located near Seneca, S.C., is Duke Energy’s largest nuclear plant with a generating capacity of 2,554 megawatts. It has three units, Unit 1 commissioned in 1973 and […]

Nineteen states and the District of Columbia are appealing a U.S. District judge decision limiting temporary reinstatement of probationary staff at the Department of Energy and many other federal agencies to just states that sued the Donald Trump Administration over mass firings. Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Justice, on behalf of DOE, the Department of […]

While plans for new nuclear units have garnered a lot of interest lately, challenges including workforce and licensing still dictate when the projects can deploy, according to panelists in an Energy Communities Alliance webinar. The ECA held a webinar “Open for Business – New Nuclear Opportunities” on Wednesday with panelists weighing in on the landscape […]

The United States’ increasing energy demand could be met through new reactors depending on factors from costs to public acceptance of nuclear power, based on an ICF International report. The  March 27 report is available on the ICF website. ICF is a consulting and technology company based in Reston, Va. With the growth of data […]

The Donald Trump administration’s pick to be deputy secretary of energy, told a Senate panel Wednesday that if confirmed his focus would be on easing federal regulatory approval for new infrastructure and electricity projects.   In his prepared testimony to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, James Danly also said keeping the Department of Energy’s […]

Secretary of Energy Chis Wright told Fox Business News last week that deleting diversity language from a federal request for proposals, could attract more interest in new small modular reactor technology funds. The Department of Energy last week issued a $900-million solicitation for small modular reactor (SMR) technology. The DOE press release from March 24 […]

Dow and X-energy Reactor Co. have submitted a construction permit application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a proposed advanced nuclear project in Seadrift, Texas. Long Mott Energy, Dow’s subsidiary, submitted the application on Monday.  Reviewing the application can take up to 30 months, as noted in the Dow and X-Energy press release. If the […]

The Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory is shopping around for industry partners to invest between $5 million and $10 million in an “incubator” for startup businesses aimed at areas such as nuclear energy and cyber security. In exchange for the seed investment, the startups would gain access to Idaho National Laboratory’s “world-class facilities and […]

The Indiana state Senate and House of Representatives have passed Senate Bill 424 on nuclear financing, which now awaits the signature of Indiana Gov. Mike Braun (R). The bill would allow public utilities to petition before or during the construction of a small modular reactor to recover pre-construction costs from customers prior to receiving certificates […]