TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS & WHAT TO KNOW THIS WEEK
- Congress remains at an impasse over passage of a continuing resolution (CR).
- Hanford Nuclear Reservation received regulatory approval to turn liquid nuclear and chemical waste into glass using vitrification technology. All eyes will be on Hanford for the October 15 scheduled WTP
start.
- Over a decade after the Kewaunee Power Station closed in Carlton, Wisconsin, the plant's owner EnergySolutions is seeking government approval to build a new nuclear plant at the site.
- New EM GAO Report - GAO issues report regarding collecting information specific to soil and legacy landfills to aid remediation efforts.
- Disappointing News - Holtec International is pulling out of plans to build a temporary storage site for commercial nuclear waste in
southeastern New Mexico - read more below.
- ECA New Nuclear Forum to be hosted in Augusta, GA from April 21-23, 2026.
- ECA's latest report "From the Atomic Age to New Nuclear" highlights new nuclear projects across the country - see more below.
- Visit ECA on LinkedIn for regular updates.
DAY 9 OF THE GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWNAs the federal government negotiates avenues to pass a continuing resolution (CR), agencies are working with reduced staff and funding and increased uncertainty over how long the shutdown will last. At DOE Headquarters, in the event of
a lapse of appropriations and the exhaustion of available balances, a small staff would provide support to portions of DOE that perform functions related to the safety of human life or the protection of property, or would remain working as necessary to discharge the President’s constitutional duties and powers, including planning and preparation of the Fiscal Year 2027 Budget. Employees performing work funded in whole
or in part by resources other than base annual appropriations will remain working after available balances from DOE’s base annual appropriations are exhausted. Once such other resources are also exhausted, only exempt employees will remain working. 3,050 agency employees accepted the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP); 1,576 are scheduled to leave DOE employment as of September 30, 2025, and 1,409 are scheduled to leave DOE employment as of December 31, 2025. Of the 3,050 employees who entered
into the DRP, 71 have since left DOE. Click here to read more about the DOE shutdown contingency plan. As it stands,
many contractors may have questions regarding funding of existing contracts. Contractors may have carry over funds to keep projects afloat for a short time, but if contracts are funded incrementally, contractors that run out of funding during the shutdown cannot access additional funds for further increments of work. Contracts funded by FY25 appropriations can be performed at a company site will likely be least impacted. Work onsite will largely depend on how DOE determines how to maintain
access to government facilities, while activities authorized by "necessary implication" may proceed (those essential for safety and security). ECA continues to monitor the progress of a CR and the interim impacts on EM work across the country. Click here to read a summary of DOE major contracts.
HANFORD SITE CAN NOW TRANSFORM NUCLEAR WASTE INTO GLASS
After decades of planning, and a number of regulatory delays, the site is turning liquid nuclear and chemical waste at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation into a much safer substance: glass. On October 1, the US Department of Energy (DOE) signed the paperwork needed to allow radioactive waste to be pumped into the Hanford nuclear site’s vitrification plant 23 years after construction
began with treatment scheduled to start by October 15th. The use of vitrification technology involves mixing the waste with glass-forming materials and heating it to 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit inside large melters. This mixture will then be poured into stainless steel canisters to cool and solidify. In this glass form, the waste will be stable and impervious to the environment, and its radioactivity will safely
dissipate over hundreds to thousands of years. “We are at the precipice of a really significant moment in Hanford’s history,” said Casey Sixkiller, director of the Washington State Department of Ecology. In June workers at the Hanford site installed the last piece of pipe, connecting underground tanks and the waste treatment plant that will begin
solidifying it in glass later this year. Bechtel National is designing, constructing and commissioning what will be the world’s largest radioactive-waste treatment plant. Read the full story from Nuclear Engineering International here.
NASEO RELEASES REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION
The National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO) periodically has contract opportunities to provide services in support of NASEO’s various program areas. The NASEO currently has an RFI on Advanced Nuclear First Movers Orderbook Strategy open for comment. The objective of the RFI is to inform
the states on how best to create a coordinated orderbook for advanced nuclear projects – a mechanism that will speed project development and lower costs. ECA is drafting a response comment highlighting the readiness of many of our communities to host new nuclear facilities, but encouraging the final advanced nuclear orderbook strategy to consider governance frameworks for local consultations along state and federal
stakeholders. The final comment will be posted on our website upon submission. The deadline for response is 5:00 p.m. ET on Friday, October 10. Click here to read the full RFI.
HOLTEC ABANDONS PLANS FOR NEW MEXICO NUCLEAR WASTE SITE
Holtec said in a statement Wednesday that the company and the project's local backers agreed to cancel the deal, citing "the untenable path forward for used fuel storage in New Mexico" and acknowledged local and state-level political opposition to the project, Axios reports. Governor Lujan Grisham has expressed fears that any temporary site could become permanent, she cited how
New Mexico is already doing its part in cleanup given the existence of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) which takes waste from across the country. Holtec said it remains open to working with other states "who are amenable to used fuel storage". Read the full story on AXIOS here.
KEWAUNEE COUNTY COULD SEE NEW NUCLEAR POWER PLANT
Over a decade after the Kewaunee Power Station closed in Carlton, Wisconsin, the plant's owner EnergySolutions is seeking government approval to build a new nuclear plant at the site - and trying to buy hundreds of acres of farmland around it, the Wisconsin Watch reports. EnergySolutions and gas and
electric utility WEC Energy Group say they’re eyeing the station in the small Kewaunee County town for a new build because they expect data centers, artificial intelligence and industrial growth to increase electricity demand in the coming decades. The plans are in the early stages, and construction likely wouldn’t start until the early 2030s if approved. Though they’re attempting to purchase hundreds of acres
from locals, the companies haven’t confirmed they intend to construct anything at the site beyond a nuclear plant. But residents are demanding reassurance that the land won’t be used for controversial projects dividing other communities, such as data centers. Officials haven’t ruled out the possibility. Town of Carlton Chairman David Hardtke says town officials have heard from data center companies interested in the
site, which is making people nervous. “The people in Carlton don’t want anything to do with that,” he said. Despite the nerves, many residents are eager for the economic boost a new nuclear plant could bring to the region. Nuclear energy experts in Wisconsin say communities often enjoy hosting a plant because it creates stable jobs and increases
local tax revenues. The project would likely bring thousands of jobs across different sectors, according to WEC. Read the full story from Wisconsin Watch
here
PACIFIC FUSION CHOOSES ALBUQUERQUE FOR $1 BILLION NUCLEAR FUSION SITE
A major win for New Mexico, the California-based nuclear fusion energy company has selected Albuquerque's Mesa del Sol to build its $1 billion facility, officials announced on September 26. Since July, the state has held its breath as it navigated competition from California cities Livermore and Alameda the Albuquerque Journal reports. In a statement from Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, “Pacific Fusion’s decision to build in New Mexico proves that our state can compete—and win—in the race to attract the most innovative companies in the world,”
Governor Lujan Grisham said. “This project will create good jobs, expand our clean-tech economy, and ensure New Mexico continues to lead in the industries of the future.” Click here to read the Governor's full statement. The 225,000-square-foot facility, once built, is expected to offer over 200 long-term jobs and hundreds more during construction. The project is estimated to generate more than $400 million in economic activity within the first
four years of operation, according to research from the Albuquerque Regional Economic Alliance, or AREA. Mayor Tim Keller told the Journal that the investment Pacific Fusion will bring to Albuquerque is a "shot-in-the-arm booster" for the economy. "In the long run, it puts us at the forefront of sustainable fusion technologies in the world," Keller
said. "This is literally putting us on the map for one of the most cutting-edge and innovative technologies that the modern world has ever produced." Read the full story
here.
GAO RELEASES REPORT ON NUCLEAR WASTE CLEANUP
On September 26, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report titled "DOE Should Collect Information Specific to Soil and Legacy Landfills to Inform Overall Remediation Efforts" GAO examined eight sites managed by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Environmental Management (EM) with such contamination and found that site-specific factors inform cleanup
decisions in the context of federal and state laws and regulations, as well as agreements EM follows to conduct cleanup. These factors include future land use, physical parameters, and community acceptance. For the eight sites GAO examined, soil and legacy landfill cleanup is estimated to cost approximately $15 billion over the next six decades. However, the sites’ estimated scope, schedule, and cost for cleanup may
change as more information becomes available. In particular, at two of the sites, EM and regulators have worked for more than a decade on the scope of remedial actions needed to clean up contaminated soil and legacy landfills. The final remedy decisions will affect the sites’ cost estimates. For example, cleanup of one legacy landfill at an EM site in Los Alamos, New Mexico, could cost about $12 million under one potential remedy but about $805 million if another remedy is selected. The GAO found that the EM cites data to department headquarters in an aggregated form, with soil cleanup information combined with that of other activities, such as groundwater cleanup. As such, the GAO said that department headquarters has been unable to readily identify the scope, schedule, and cost of soil and legacy landfill cleanup over the 12 sites where such work is being performed. “Being able to identify soil cleanup activities—distinct from broader cleanup efforts—would allow EM headquarters to more adequately prioritize cleanup across sites to achieve the most efficient risk reduction,” the report states. Click here to read the full report
NEW NUCLEAR DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHT: OHIO
In ECA’s latest paper, “From the Atomic Age to New Nuclear,” ECA captures a snapshot of the nuclear projects underway in the United States by state including both federal and private
sites, and lays out the attributes that make energy communities optimal for this new era of American nuclear leadership. Keep reading what new nuclear projects are already underway in the great state of Ohio in the excerpt below: Aurora Powerhouse Development - Oklo will build its second and third commercial 15-MWe Aurora Powerhouse reactors on land owned by the Southern Ohio Diversification Initiative
(SODI), a commercial reuse organization (CRO) tasked by the DOE to re-industrialize land around the Historic Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PORTS) south of Piketon, OH. The site will host two commercial 15-MWe Aurora powerhouses for a combined total of 30 MWe of energy production and “over 50 MW of clean heating, with opportunities to expand.” The project was named in the DOE Reactor Pilot Program, groundbreaking for the first powerhouse began on September 22, and power production could
begin as soon as 2028. Read more about the project here. American Centrifuge Plant - Uranium enrichment to produce high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) resumed in 2023 at a plant owned by Centrus Energy Corp. on the former Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Piketon, OH. The facility marked the first time an American company produced HALEU in the United States. The plant started enrichment with 16 centrifuges capable of producing about a ton of HALEU per year. The plant has capacity for 5,760 centrifuges, and Centrus has
the potential to build another plant on the site. With the potential to employ up to 500 employees on the site, the plant will create thousands of jobs throughout the HALEU supply chain. Read more about the project here. Vistra at Davis Besse - Davis Besse Nuclear Power Station, located Northeast of Oak Harbor, OH, is working to demonstrate a co-located electrolysis system. The effort would support the clean production of hydrogen for the area’s industrial and transportation services. Recently, Davis Besse received approval to extend operation of the
plant until 2037. Read more about the project here. To learn more about New Nuclear projects in Idaho and across the
country, as well as how energy communities will be instrumental to their success, click here to read From the Atomic Age to New Nuclear.
ECA NEW NUCLEAR FORUM TO BE HOSTED IN AUGUSTA, GA FROM APRIL 21-23, 2026
Energy Communities Alliance (ECA) is pleased to host the fifth annual ECA Forum in Augusta, GA from April 21 - April 23, 2026. The meeting is part of ECA’s ongoing New Nuclear Initiative to define the role of local governments in supporting the development of the new nuclear technologies. April 21 | Registration Opens & Nuclear 101 April 22 | Full Day General Session April 23 | Half-Day General Session The ECA Forum is 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. Stay tuned for further details on registration, agenda, and
more! Click here to learn more about the upcoming ECA New Nuclear Forum!
WHAT YOU'VE MISSED: Money to oversee nuclear weapons safety will start running low after 8 days, Energy secretary says Energy
Secretary Chris Wright is warning that the agency within the Energy Department that oversees the safety and reliability of the nation’s nuclear weapons stockpile has only enough funding to operate at full strength for about eight more days (three more days at the time of this writing) because of the ongoing government shutdown. Read the full story Urenco USA given go-ahead for 10% enrichment Urenco USA has received authorisation from US regulators to
produce uranium enriched up to 10% and says it will be the first commercial uranium enricher to produce so-called LEU+. Initial production of LEU+ will take place this year, with the first product deliveries to a fuel fabricator planned for 2026. Read the full story Newsom signs bills advancing fusion, quantum technology sectors Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday signed two bills lending state support to two new promising technologies: fusion energy and quantum technology. Senate Bill
80 (click here to read the full bill text), will support fusion energy research with a goal toward delivering the world's first fusion energy pilot plant over the
next 20 years. Fusion, currently in the early stages of research, is often called the “holy grail” of energy. Read the full story Senate confirms FERC nominees, giving agency Republican majority The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed Laura Swett and David LaCerte to fill vacant seats at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, giving the independent agency a 3-2 Republican majority. Read the full story
Gone Fission Podcast - TVA SMR at Clinch River September 22,
2025 | S5 E5 The 2025 Nuclear Opportunities Workshop sponsored by the East Tennessee Economic Council in Knoxville continues to yield newsworthy stories for the Gone Fission podcast. This week, host Michael Butler talks with Tennessee Valley Authority Vice President Greg Borschieg about TVA's plans to build a small modular reactor on the Clinch River site in Oak Ridge. In
May, TVA became the first American utility to apply for a construction permit to build an SMR. Learn more about this groundbreaking project in this week's episode of the Gone Fission podcast. https://gonefissionpodcast.com/ EFCOG Exchange Podcast September 17, 2025 | S1 E1 In this debut episode, EFCOG Chair and Honeywell Federal Solutions VP/GM David “DJ” Johnson sits down with Mike Nartker, VP of Communications at Longenecker & Associates, to explore EFCOG’s history, mission, and the impactful work happening across the DOE complex. New to EFCOG? This episode offers an engaging introduction to the
organization and its current priorities. Already familiar? You’ll hear fresh insights from DJ and Mike on opportunities to strengthen collaboration with DOE—highlighting how digital tools and AI can help advance the Department’s evolving mission. Stay tuned for future episodes of the EFCOG Exchange Podcast, where we’ll continue spotlighting innovation, collaboration, and success across the DOE enterprise. https://efcog.buzzsprout.com/2531686
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