The Department of Energy has approved the preliminary documented safety analysis for Hawthorne, Calif.-based nuclear company Valar Atomics’s demonstration reactor Thursday.
The announcement of the completed safety analysis was made by DOE Idaho Operations Manager Robert Boston in a Friday LinkedIn post. Valar becomes the third demonstration reactor under DOE’s pilot reactor program to get its safety analysis approved and the second this week, with Radiant’s being on Monday.
Valar Atomics is developing Ward 250, a helium-cooled, TRISO-fueled, high-temperature gas reactor.
The Department of Energy, using its national laboratories, is digitizing 80 years of nuclear research data into a searchable database for future energy and security decisions as part of the Genesis Mission, DOE said in a Thursday press release.
It is part of 26 science and technology projects being carried out in conjunction with the Genesis artificial intelligence (AI), DOE said in the release.
“This commitment to applying cutting-edge science and technology protects our nation, marking a pivotal step towards a more secure, prosperous, and innovative future through collaborative federal efforts,” Brandon Williams, the head of DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration, said in the release.
NuScale Power has partnered with the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory to use an artificial intelligence (AI)-based design framework for its 12-NuScale Power Module configuration.
NuScale said in its Thursday press release that the two entities are exploring through AI-based technology how fuel could be more efficiently managed across multiple reactors at a single site.
The partnership comes through DOE’s Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) initiative. NuScale was part of the first round of GAIN vouchers awarded in fiscal 2026.
Kurt Bender was appointed BWX Technologies senior vice president and chief digital officer, effective Feb. 5, the company said last week.
In the role, Bender will be responsible for BWXT’s digital strategy supporting operations in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. BWXT president and CEO Rex Geveden said the promotion comes as the company opened a new digital center in Melbourne, Fla, according to BWXT’s Feb. 5 press release.
Bender succeeds BWXT’s first chief digital officer, Omar Meguid, who was appointed in 2023, according to the release. Bender was most recently BWXT’s vice president of information technology (IT) applications, quality and continuous improvement.