DOE ANNOUNCES NEXT STEPS TO BUILD DOMESTIC URANIUM SUPPLY FOR ADVANCED NUCLEAR REACTORS AS PART OF PRESIDENT BIDEN'S INVESTING IN AMERICA
AGENDA
DOE| 01/09/2024 In support of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, today the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued a request for proposals (RFP) for uranium enrichment services to help establish a reliable domestic supply of fuels using high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU)—a crucial material needed to deploy advanced nuclear reactors, which will help reach President Biden’s goal of net-zero emissions by 2050, increase
energy security, create good-paying jobs, and strengthen U.S. economic competitiveness. Currently, HALEU is not commercially available from U.S.-based suppliers, and boosting domestic supply could spur the development and deployment of advanced reactors in the United States. “Nuclear energy
currently provides almost half of the nation’s carbon-free power, and it will continue to play a significant part in transitioning to a clean energy future,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “President Biden’s Investing in America is strengthening our national and energy security through the domestic buildup of a robust HALEU supply chain, helping bring advanced reactors online in time to combat the climate
crisis.” “The Biden-Harris Administration knows that nuclear energy is essential to accelerating America’s clean energy future,” said Assistant to the President and National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi. “Boosting our domestic uranium supply won’t just
advance President Biden’s historic climate agenda, but also increase America’s energy security, create good-paying union jobs, and strengthen our economic competitiveness. The path to greater energy security and more climate solutions runs through investments like these, being made at historic scale by President Biden. It’s good news for our economy, for America’s union workforce, and for our planet.” In total, President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act will provide up to $500 million for HALEU enrichment contracts selected through this RFP and a separate one, released in November, for services to deconvert the uranium enriched through this RFP into metal, oxide, and other forms to be used as fuel for
advanced reactors. Nuclear power is America’s largest source of clean energy and provides firm, reliable, and safe power. Advanced nuclear power designs using HALEU fuels represent a critical set of technologies that can help to reach U.S. emissions targets and contribute to America’s recent
pledge with 21 other countries to triple nuclear power globally by 2050. The existing U.S. fleet of reactors runs on uranium fuel that is enriched up to five percent with uranium-235—the main fissile isotope that produces energy during a chain reaction. However, most U.S. advanced reactors require
HALEU, which is enriched between 5% to 20%, to achieve smaller and more versatile designs with the highest standards of safety, security, and nonproliferation. HALEU will also allow developers to optimize their systems for longer life cores, increased efficiencies and better fuel utilization. DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy plans to award one or more contracts to produce HALEU from domestic uranium enrichment capabilities. Once enriched, the HALEU material will be stored on site until there is a need to ship it to deconverters. Under the HALEU enrichment
contracts, which have a maximum duration of 10 years, the government assures each contractor a minimum order value of $2 million, to be fulfilled over the term of the contract. Enrichment and storage activities must occur in the continental United States and comply with the National Environmental Policy Act. Proposals are due by 5 p.m. MST on March 8. This RFP incorporated industry feedback received on a draft version issued in June. DOE is supporting several activities to expand the HALEU supply chain for advanced commercial reactors, including recycling spent nuclear fuel from government-owned research reactors. In November, DOE reached a key milestone under its HALEU Demonstration project when a company produced the nation’s first 20 kilograms of HALEU, providing a first of
its kind production in the United States in more than 70 years. DOE is also working with like-minded countries to catalyze public and private sector investments that
will expand global uranium enrichment and conversion capacity over the next three years and establish a resilient uranium supply market that is free from Russian influence. Together, the United States, Canada, France, Japan, and the United Kingdom have announced collective plans to mobilize $4.2 billion in government-led spending to develop safe and secure nuclear energy supply chains. Learn more about HALEU Availability Program activities here. Read more >>
EM CONTINUES WINNING STREAK AS SCORECARD SHOWS ANOTHER YEAR OF DEEP CLEANUP PROGRESS
DOE-EM | 01/10/2024 EM checked off the majority of its priorities for calendar year (CY) 2023, completing complex work that led to critical progress, made possible by support from its state, tribal and local partners. The CY 2023 Mission & Priorities Scorecard demonstrates EM’s commitment to the health and safety of the communities hosting cleanup sites. EM again hit its mark in 2023 by finishing significant construction milestones, executing key cleanup projects, reducing the EM footprint, awarding major contracts that accelerate progress, and driving innovation, sustainability and improved performance. “EM made substantial progress on its cleanup missions in 2023, advancing priorities to treat tank waste, carry out deactivation and decommissioning and remediate groundwater and soil contamination,” EM Senior Advisor William “Ike” White said. “We completed the majority of our calendar year 2023 priorities, and I am proud to note
that those accomplishments were made possible thanks to our dedicated workforce, the communities surrounding our sites and our partners across the country.” A 125-foot-tall environmental exhaust stack towers over the New Filter Building, one of two buildings that make up the Safety Significant Confinement Ventilation System at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant. EM achieved or exceeded several key priorities in
CY 2023, including: - Beginning commissioning of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant’s new large-scale ventilation system, also known as the Safety Significant Confinement Ventilation System. When completed and online, the facility — the largest containment ventilation system in the DOE complex — will significantly increase airflow to the nation’s only deep geological salt repository for defense-related transuranic waste.
- Pretreating
more than 800,000 gallons of tank waste cumulatively at the Hanford
Site that is staged to feed to the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant when hot commissioning of melters begins.
- Authorizing the newest mega-size disposal unit to begin operating at the Savannah River Site, marking the last step before the Saltstone Disposal Unit 8 begins to receive decontaminated material for disposal. The unit was completed three years ahead of schedule.
- Finishing demolition of four buildings at the Test Cell C Facility ahead of schedule at the Nevada National Security Sites. The facility was part of the now-inactive Nuclear Rocket Development Station, which supported development and testing of nuclear rocket engines from 1957 until 1973.
- Retrieving the last spent nuclear fuel from a water-filled basin and safely transferring possession of the fuel elements to a complex at the Idaho National Laboratory Site, completing the project more than nine months ahead of a milestone under an agreement with the state of Idaho.
- Safely completing demolition of the Low Intensity Test Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, which clears away another high-risk excess contaminated facility, reduces risk and opens land for expanding research missions at the laboratory.
- Completing the safe and successful removal of 1 million pounds of hazardous refrigerant stored at the Paducah
Site — the third year the site has risen to this million-mark challenge.
- Ordering at least 150 electric vehicles to support EM-wide fleet goals.
Click the blue box for the complete scorecard of CY 2023
priorities and other information:
EM will announce its mission and priorities for CY 2024 shortly. Read more >>
REGISTRATION IS LIVE FOR ECA's New Nuclear Forum: Building Nuclear Partnerships and Projects, May 8-9, 2024 in Kennewick,
WA
ECA is excited to be hosting its third New Nuclear Forum, the only meeting designed to bring together DOE, federal, state, local and tribal governments and policymakers with developers, utilities,
regulators, industry, and academia to identify opportunities, challenges and to build the partnerships necessary to support nuclear development. Communities across the country are considering nuclear projects for many reasons - from diversifying regional economies, creating clean energy jobs or meeting carbon reduction goals, to increasing energy security and rebuilding the U.S. supply chain. Some communities have a familiarity with nuclear energy projects, while others are just beginning to evaluate potential interest. The ECA
Forum is designed to enable shared learning so that local, State and Tribal governments evaluating nuclear projects can be meaningfully engaged - and prepared - to match the strengths and needs of their communities with new nuclear opportunities.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
The ECA Forum is open to communities, State, Tribal and local policymakers, industry, utilities,
developers, experts, financiers, state legislators, community groups, and economic development organizations working to build capacity and support for new nuclear development in the U.S. MEETING GOALS:
This meeting
is part of ECA's New Nuclear Initiative to define the role of local governments in supporting the development of the new nuclear technologies, and answer three core questions: - What do communities need to
know to attract and support new nuclear development/missions?
- How can communities support industry, national laboratories, state, and federal governments and how should they communicate about local resources and development opportunities?
- What hurdles and challenges will communities face - along with industry and
developers - and who can we work with to overcome them?
AGENDA:
ECA, with support from the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy, has developed an agenda that continues to look
holistically at the what a nuclear project entails: from the front-end of the fuel-cycle to the back-end of the fuel cycle, from building local support, to state support and enabling legislation, from identifying the right public-private partnerships, to understanding regulatory oversight. Session topics include: - How to Build Community Acceptance
- Reusing Energy Sites for New Nuclear Development
- Understanding Industrial Applications of Nuclear Energy
- Pursuing a Reliable, Domestic Nuclear Fuel Supply
- Rebuilding the U.S. Nuclear
Supply
OPTIONAL OPPORTUNITIES:
Tuesday, May 7, 2024: ECA is offering an optional "Nuclear 101" for participants new to nuclear energy.
Friday, May 10, 2024: ECA is offering an optional tour: Historic Hanford Tour / Future of Nuclear around Hanford Tour. Additional registration will be required and openings are limited.
INTERESTED IN BEING A SPONSOR? To learn more about sponsorship opportunities, please contact Autumn Bogus, ECA Forum Staff, at abogus@la-inc.com.
QUESTIONS?
For any questions, comments, or to learn more about the ECA New Nuclear Forums, please contact Kara Colton,
ECA Director of Nuclear Policy, at kara.colton@energyca.org or Faith Sanchez, ECA Program Manager, at faiths@energyca.org.
NEW MEDIA: Gone Fission Nuclear Report: Remembering Gary Peterson January 8, 2024 | S4E1 Every DOE community has local leaders who step up to advocate for funding and new missions and to hold the Department of Energy accountable for its cleanup obligations.
These leaders take the time to educate themselves on site issues, get to know DOE leaders and members of Congress, and use their voices and influence to represent their communities. In this week’s episode, the Gone Fission Nuclear Report remembers one such leader--Gary Petersen, a long-time passionate advocate for the Hanford site in Washington State, who passed away last October, leaving an impressive legacy of advocacy and support.
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Check out ECA's latest
report! DISPOSAL DRIVES CLEANUP: RE-ENERGIZING MOMENTUM FOR DISPOSAL SOLUTIONS FOR RADIOACTIVE WASTE
This report calls on the Department of Energy to launch the initiative to develop the actual waste disposition approaches. The Department could potentially save hundreds of billions of dollars in cleanup costs by using its available tools and implementing the report’s recommendations.
Interactive guide for communities and governments to help navigate nuclear waste cleanup The Energy Communities Alliance (ECA) recently released the Guide to Successful Environmental Cleanup, an interactive online resource that provides frequently asked questions, case studies, and recommendations regarding nuclear waste cleanup. To assist local government officials, their communities, and federal agencies in deciphering
the complexities of the environmental cleanup process, ECA developed this guide to facilitate future successful cleanups.
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Stay Current on Activities in the DOE World Read the latest edition of the ECA Bulletin, a regular newsletter providing a detailed brief of ECA activities,
legislative news, and major events from across the DOE complex. Have suggestions for future editions? Email bulletin@energyca.org. |
Learn More about Cleanup Sites with ECA's DOE Site Profiles ECA's new site profiles detail DOE's active Environmental Management cleanup sites and national
laboratories, highlighting their history, missions, and priorities. The profiles are a key source for media, stakeholders, and the public to learn more about DOE site activities, contractors, advisory boards, and their surrounding local governments.
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