Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Iran must agree to no longer enrich uranium because “the only countries in the world that enrich uranium are the ones that have nuclear weapons,” according to a May 1 State Department interview.
“What they’re basically asking is to be the only non-weapon country in the world that’s enriching uranium,” Rubio said. “If Iran wants a peaceful civil nuclear program, meaning they want nuclear power plants like other countries in the world have, there’s a way to do it. And that is you build the reactors and you import enriched uranium to fuel those reactors. That’s how dozens of countries around the world do it.”
Rubio added that the “path forward,” and the “best opportunity [Iran will] have,” is if Iran agrees not to enrich.
Elementl Power has signed a strategic agreement with Google on Wednesday to develop three advanced reactors for the technology company.
In the agreement, Elementl Power, a nuclear developer based in Washington, D.C, plans to provide at least 600 megawatts for each project, with the option for commercial off-take when completed, as said in the Wednesday joint press release. As a part of the agreement, Google will commit early-stage development capital towards the three projects.
Google’s newest agreement is an addition to the company’s efforts to secure advanced nuclear generation for its projects. The company previously signed an agreement in October 2024 to purchase electricity from small modular reactors built by Kairos Power. The deal will enable up to 500 MW of electricity.
Alex Fitzsimmons will lead the Department of Energy’s Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response, the agency announced May 2.
Carl Coe, the current lead on the Department of Government Efficiency at DOE, will assume Fitzsimmon’s role as DOE chief of staff.
“The race for global leadership in AI is the new Manhattan Project, and winning this race depends on our ability to increase access to abundant supplies of reliable, affordable energy and build secure infrastructure,” Secretary of Energy Chris Wright said in the press release. “The Department of Energy is focused on the need to meet growing energy demand while strengthening the resilience and security of U.S. energy infrastructure against all threats and hazards.
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Wednesday favorably reported out two of President Donald Trump’s Department of Energy nominees.
The committee endorsed Preston Wells Griffith to be undersecretary of energy and Dario Gil to be undersecretary of energy for science. Both nominations are being placed on the Senate executive calendar, one of the last steps before being voted on by the full Senate.
Griffith passed 14-6 and Gill passed 15-to-5. Gill served on a group of national science advisers during the first Trump administration. Currently a consultant, Griffith was a special assistant to the president on energy and environmental policy during the first Trump term.
