Archive

National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)

The NNSA is the semi-autonomous DOE agency responsible for the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile, naval reactor propulsion, and nuclear nonproliferation programs. Reporting covers warhead life extension, plutonium pit production, site contracts, budget requests, and the agency’s laboratory and production plant complex.

  • NNSA approves critical decision 4 for UPF subproject, signifying completion

    The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) approved Critical Decision-4, or the completion of the final stage of construction, for the Process Support Facilities subproject for the Uranium Processing Facility (UPF) at Y-12 National Security Complex. “With the completion of the Process Support Facilities [PSF] at UPF, the team is one step closer to delivering this […]

  • NNSA announces return to work to contractors

    The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announced its return to “normal operations” to contractors on a federal procurement website following the end of the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. “Contractors are advised that DOE/NNSA contracting activities have resumed,” the notice said Nov. 13. “DOE/NNSA appreciates the patience and cooperation of our contractor community and […]

  • Austal USA to share 3D printing tech with Aussie shipbuilder ASC

    Austal USA recently announced an agreement with Australia’s government-owned Australian Submarine Corporation (ASC) to share its 3D printing and additive manufacturing technology in another move to aid Australia’s industry as the AUKUS agreement proceeds. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) specifically covers collaboration on additive manufacturing (AM) technologies and workforce development via training and upskilled in […]

  • HII delivers Virginia-class sub to Navy

    Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) on Nov. 21 announced its Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) Division has delivered the future USS Massachusetts (SSN-798) Virginia-class fast-attack submarine to the U.S. Navy.  The company noted this is the 12th Virginia-class boat NNS has delivered to the service. SSN-798 was first christened in May 2023 and is the fifth Navy […]

  • DOE undergoes reorganization under Chris Wright

    Secretary of Energy Chris Wright Thursday announced reorganization of the Department of Energy with a prominent role in the organizational chart for the semiautonomous National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). The reorganization is designed “to strengthen DOE’s ability to execute President Trump’s bold agenda to restore American energy dominance,” Wright said in a press release. “This […]

  • DOE spokesperson: Trump not scheduled to meet with DOE, NNSA on nuclear testing

    The Department of Energy told the Exchange Monitor Monday that, despite media outlets saying otherwise, President Donald Trump will not be meeting in the Oval Office with high-level nuclear weapons complex officials. News outlets such as CNN reported Friday that Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) head Brandon Williams, and officials […]

  • SC high court: Attorneys in Savannah River MOX case entitled to $75M

    The South Carolina Supreme Court ruled the lawyers who successfully sued the Department of Energy over the Savannah River Site’s mismanaged Mixed Oxide (MOX) plutonium facility are entitled to $75 million of the $600 million settlement the state received.  The ruling was issued last Wednesday Nov. 12. South Carolina has litigation against DOE dating to […]

  • SC high court: Attorneys in Savannah River MOX case entitled to $75M

    The South Carolina Supreme Court ruled the lawyers who successfully sued the Department of Energy over the Savannah River Site’s mismanaged Mixed Oxide (MOX) plutonium facility are entitled to $75 million of the $600 million settlement the state received.  The ruling was issued last Wednesday Nov. 12. South Carolina has litigation against DOE dating to […]

  • NNSA awards Anduril $140 million contract for counter-drone systems

    The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) awarded California-based defense technology company Anduril with a $140 million contract to procure counter uncrewed aircraft systems (CUAS) on four sites, a procurement notice site said last week. CUAS is a capability used to detect and neutralize hostile drone threats with airspace security and sensors, usually.  The indefinite delivery, […]

  • SC high court: Attorneys in Savannah River MOX case entitled to $75M

    The South Carolina Supreme Court ruled the lawyers who successfully sued the Department of Energy over the Savannah River Site’s mismanaged Mixed Oxide (MOX) plutonium facility are entitled to $75 million of the $600 million settlement the state received.  The ruling was issued last Wednesday Nov. 12. South Carolina has litigation against DOE dating to […]

  • Sandia completes B61-12 gravity bomb flight test on F-35, lab says

    The National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) Sandia National Laboratories announced Thursday it conducted a flight test of the B61-12 nuclear gravity bomb on an F-35 aircraft in August. The flight tests took place at Tonopah Test Range in Nevada, with aircraft generation from Hill Air Force Base in Utah, a press release from Sandia said. […]

  • Wrap Up: Y-12 office space sought; NWTRB delays meeting; Ex-VP Cheney dies at age 84

    Consolidated Nuclear Security (CNS), the Bechtel-led contractor team that oversees the Y-12 National Security Complex, is looking at office space near the facility in Oak Ridge, Tenn. CNS recently took in expressions of interest (EOI) from potential suppliers of office space located within five to 20 miles of the Y-12 complex at the Department of […]

  • No post-election deal yet on reopening government

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Despite some signs of hope, as of Exchange Monitor ‘s Friday deadline, there is not a vote scheduled in the Senate to reopen the government. That is despite a Republican senator’s confidence that would happen. Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told a quorum of reporters […]

  • Y-12 prime shops for office space near Oak Ridge

    Consolidated Nuclear Security (CNS), the Bechtel-led contractor team that oversees the Y-12 National Security Complex, is looking at office space near the facility in Oak Ridge, Tenn. CNS recently took in expressions of interest (EOI) from potential suppliers of office space located within five to 20 miles of the Y-12 complex at the Department of […]

  • Y-12 prime shops for office space near Oak Ridge

    Consolidated Nuclear Security (CNS), the Bechtel-led contractor team that oversees the Y-12 National Security Complex, is looking at office space near the facility in Oak Ridge, Tenn. CNS recently took in expressions of interest (EOI) from potential suppliers of office space located within five to 20 miles of the Y-12 complex at the Department of […]

  • DoD nuclear nominee questions Russia, China’s compliance with test bans

    There have been reports since 2019 on Russia and China’s potential noncompliance with the Threshold Test Ban Treaty, one of President Donald Trump’s Department of Defense nominees said in Senate testimony Tuesday. Robert Kadlec, Trump’s nominee to be assistant secretary of defense for nuclear deterrence, chemical, and biological defense policy and programs, mentioned the reports […]

  • Former DOE exec Avery becomes Westinghouse VP

    Jeff Avery, a longtime federal executive within the Department of Energy’s nuclear complex, has accepted a vice president’s post with Westinghouse Electric, Avery said this week on his LinkedIn page. “I’m excited to share that I’ve joined Westinghouse Electric Company as vice president, Chief Operating & Administrative Officer for Westinghouse Government Services,” Avery said Monday […]

  • Trump: China, Russia are testing; Wright says no ‘mushroom cloud’ near NNSS

    In the wake of President Donald Trump’s announcement that the United States would test nuclear weapons “on an equal basis” with other countries, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright clarified this did not mean explosive tests. “I think the tests we’re talking about right now are systems tests,” Wright said in the interview last week on […]

  • NNSA partners with HPE and NVIDIA for two new supercomputers

    The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announced Tuesday its Los Alamos National Laboratory selected tech companies Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) and NVIDIA to develop and deploy two new supercomputers. The two computers, named “Mission” and “Vision,” will be used for modeling and simulations at the lab.  “Mission” will be used to assist NNSA research without […]

  • East Tennessee is primed for more nuclear opportunities, panel says

    KNOXVILLE, TENN. – East Tennessee could become a nuclear industry hub, several state officials said at a conference here Wednesday. That was a central theme in an afternoon panel discussion of regional business opportunities at the Energy, Technology and Environmental Business Association’s (ETEBA) annual Business Opportunities and Technical Conference.  Tennessee Department Economic and Community Development […]

  • Contractor group says NNSA contractors have 2-4 weeks of funding left

    The Professional Services Council (PSC), a trade association representing 400 federal contractors, wrote a letter Oct. 28 to Congressional leaders mourning the federal government shutdown, citing its effect on the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) among other agencies. The letter, obtained by the Exchange Monitor, was addressed to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), Senate […]

  • Subcontractors forced to navigate government shutdown woes

    KNOXVILLE, TENN – In the fifth week of the government shutdown, Department of Energy subcontractors are struggling to keep afloat, small businesses representatives said at a conference here Wednesday. At the Energy, Technology and Environmental Business Association’s (ETEBA) annual Business Opportunities and Technical Conference, a panel of executives from DOE subcontractors spoke about how they […]

  • House Dems “urgently demand” end to furloughs as labs send workers home

    House lawmakers condemned the furloughs of 1,400 of DOE’s semi-autonomous National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) workers in a letter to Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and NNSA administrator Brandon Williams. “As Secretary Wright noted in his press availability in Las Vegas, furloughing NNSA employees has never happened before. Government shutdowns, however, have occurred throughout the […]

  • Wrap Up: Hanford WTP filling containers; Trump interested in nuke testing; Westinghouse, Cameco reach nuclear power deal with DOE; much more

    The Bechtel-built Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) at the Hanford Site in Washington state is continuing its opening weeks of operation and has filled 10 containers as of Monday, Oct. 27, according to the Department of Energy. The first two containers are scheduled to be shipped to the Hanford Integrated Disposal Facility this week, […]

  • As STRATCOM nominee testifies, Trump said start testing nukes “equal” with Russia, China

    President Donald Trump said on his Truth Social account Wednesday he ordered the Pentagon to “immediately” begin the process of testing nuclear weapons “on an equal basis” with Russia and China. Trump’s announcement came around an hour before he was set to meet with Chinese president Xi Jinping. It also came the day before Vice […]

  • Contractor group says NNSA, DOE contractors have 2-4 weeks of funding left

    The Professional Services Council (PSC), a trade association representing 400 federal contractors, wrote a letter Oct. 28 to Congressional leaders mourning the federal government shutdown, citing its effect on the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) among other agencies. The letter, obtained by the Exchange Monitor, was addressed to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), Senate […]

  • Contractor group says NNSA contractors have 2-4 weeks of funding left

    The Professional Services Council (PSC), a trade association representing 400 federal contractors, wrote a letter Oct. 28 to Congressional leaders mourning the federal government shutdown, citing its effect on the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) among other agencies. The letter, obtained by the Exchange Monitor, was addressed to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), Senate […]

  • DNFSB urges more LANL safety, voices concern over Y-12 in NNSA welcome letter

    The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) hopes Brandon Williams, the newly confirmed administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, will prioritize a list of safety challenges that the board wrote him about last month. “Congratulations on your confirmation as Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)!” the nation’s nuclear safety watchdog started its […]

  • NNSA partners with HPE and NVIDIA for two new supercomputers

    The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announced Tuesday its Los Alamos National Laboratory selected tech companies Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) and NVIDIA to develop and deploy two new supercomputers. The two computers, named “Mission” and “Vision,” will be used for modeling and simulations at the lab.  “Mission” will be used to assist NNSA research without […]

  • Coming up:

    Here are events related to nuclear matters that Exchange Monitor staff are tracking:  (With the federal shutdown still in effect at press time it is advisable to double-check with sponsors to see if government-related speakers/events are still scheduled. ) October 27: CANCELLED: The Congressional Nuclear Security Working Group is canceling for now the discussion on […]