Nuclear waste technology company Deep Isolation Nuclear has launched a multiyear demonstration program of its deep borehole technology for disposing of nuclear waste. The full-scale, at-depth deep borehole demonstration program is being done in collaboration with Halliburton, Amentum, NAC International, and Occlusion Nuclear Solutions, along with the Deep Borehole Demonstration Center (DBDC).

The Department of Energy's Office of Environmental Management (EM) on Tuesday announced a partnership with California-based nuclear fuel company General Matter for the potential use of the long-idle Fuels and Materials Examination Facility (FMEF) at the Hanford Site in Washington state.

According to the announcement, the DOE and General Matter have signed a lease to explore the FMEF's potential to be used for advanced nuclear fuel cycle technologies and materials, in part to help satisfy the predicted future requirements of artificial intelligence.

The Department of Energy has announced that it is establishing a categorical exclusion for the application of National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) procedures to the authorization, siting, construction, operation, reauthorization, and decommissioning of advanced nuclear reactors.

According to the DOE, this significant change, which goes into effect today, “is based on the experience of DOE and other federal agencies, current technologies, regulatory requirements, and accepted industry practice.”

The Department of Energy has issued a request for information inviting states to express interest in hosting Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campuses. According to the DOE, the proposed campuses could support work across the nuclear fuel life cycle, with a primary focus on fuel fabrication, enrichment, spent fuel reprocessing or recycling, separations, and radioactive waste management.

The DOE said the RFI marks the first step toward potentially establishing voluntary federal-state partnerships designed to build a coherent, end-to-end nuclear energy strategy for the country.

Two participants in the Department of Energy’s Reactor Pilot Program have recently announced significant milestones on their associated reactor projects. Aalo Atomics successfully completed its final design review (FDR), and Antares Nuclear has received DOE approval of its preliminary documented safety analysis (PDSA).

Katy Huff, former assistant secretary of nuclear energy at the Department of Energy, recently wrote an op-ed that was published in Scientific American.

In the piece, Huff, who is an ANS member and an associate professor in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering at the University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign, argues that weakening Nuclear Regulatory Commission radiation regulations without new research-based evidence will fail to speed up nuclear energy development and could have negative consequences.

Centrus Energy Corp. is planning a major expansion of its Oak Ridge, Tenn., Technology and Manufacturing Center. The build-out would allow it to expedite large-scale deployment of centrifuges.

Amir Vexler, Centrus president and CEO, announced the expansion on January 23, along with Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and Deputy Gov. Stuart McWhorter.

On January 16, Tenn. Gov. Bill Lee, Deputy Gov. Stuart McWhorter, and officials from Laser Isotope Separation Technologies announced the company’s plans to expand in Oak Ridge, Tenn. That expansion will come with a $1.38 billion investment from LIS Technologies for what the company says will be the first commercial laser uranium enrichment plant in the United States.

On January 15, in an 82–14 vote, the U.S. Senate passed an Energy and Water Development appropriations bill to fund the U.S. Department of Energy for fiscal year 2026 as part of a broader package that also funded the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

On January 16, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico signed an intergovernmental agreement to cooperate on the development of Slovakia’s civil nuclear power program. This agreement spans a variety of civil nuclear activities, but especially notable is the inclusion of a plan to develop an American 1,200-MWe commercial power reactor at Bohunice nuclear power plant.

Pfluger

Levin

Rep. Mike Levin (D., Calif.) and Rep. August Pfluger (R., Texas) are urging Energy Secretary Chris Wright to establish a safe, effective, and long-term management program for spent nuclear fuel. In a January 15 letter to Wright, the two U.S. representatives asked the DOE to “break the current impasse over nuclear waste and develop a workable solution that encourages state collaboration.”

The letter was sent ahead of the DOE’s anticipated release of a new report that will recommend an updated national policy on spent nuclear fuel, as directed in Executive Order 14302, “Reinvigorating the Nuclear Industrial Base.”

Nuclear power in space is back in the news for the second time this week as microreactor start-up Nano Nuclear has released a request for information to identify organizations that may support the company in the development of its Loki micro modular reactor. The company’s goal is eventual deployment of Loki on the lunar surface.

Today, a bipartisan group of experts including energy consultant Lake Barrett and former NRC chair Allison Macfarlane have published a report titled The Path Forward for Nuclear Waste in the U.S.

The report recommends a new solution for managing domestic nuclear waste—one that centers around the foundation of an independent corporation led by reactor owners. Responsibility for waste management transport, storage, and disposal would be managed by this corporation rather than the Department of Energy.

NASA and the Department of Energy have announced a “renewed commitment” to their mutual goal of supporting research and development for a nuclear fission reactor on the lunar surface to provide power for future missions. The agencies have signed a memorandum of understanding that “solidifies this collaboration and advances President Trump’s vision of American space superiority.”

Tech giant Meta is making big bets on TerraPower and Oklo. With the former, the hyperscaler could support the deployment of up to eight new reactors. With the latter, it could be as many as sixteen.

For both start-ups, Meta hopes its demand bolsters supply chains, the workforce, and the nuclear industry generally. For itself, the company is aiming to secure more generation to cleanly power its AI ambitions.

Thursday was a busy news day for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, with three significant announcements.

In the span of a few hours, the NRC released the news of Ho Nieh’s promotion to chair, the reversal of the plan to sunset its aircraft impact assessment provisions, and new guidance for interagency collaboration.

The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy convened its first hearing of the year, “American Energy Dominance: Dawn of the New Nuclear Era,” on January 7, where lawmakers and industry leaders discussed how nuclear energy can help meet surging electricity demand driven by artificial intelligence, data centers, advanced manufacturing, and national security needs.

This week, the Department of Energy has finalized two new other transaction agreements (OTAs) with participating companies in its Reactor Pilot Program, which aims to get one or two fast-tracked reactors on line by July 4 of this year. Those companies are Terrestrial Energy and Oklo.

Yesterday, the Department of Energy announced that three enrichment services companies have been awarded task orders worth $900 million each. Those task orders were given to American Centrifuge Operating (a Centrus Energy subsidiary) and General Matter, both of which will develop domestic HALEU enrichment capacity, along with Orano Federal Services, which will build domestic LEU enrichment capacity.

The DOE also announced that it has awarded Global Laser Enrichment an additional $28 million to continue advancing next generation enrichment technology.

Fusion technology company Thea Energy announced this week that it has completed the preconceptual design of its fusion power plant, called Helios. According to the company, Helios is “the first stellarator fusion power plant architecture that is realistic to build and operate with hardware that is available today, and that is tolerant to the rigors of manufacturing, construction, long-term operation, and maintenance of a commercial device.”