TODAY'S HIGHLIGHTS & WHAT TO KNOW THIS WEEK
- Congress remains at an impasse over passage of a continuing resolution (CR).
- Hanford WTP - the world's largest radioactive-waste treatment plant ("WTP") is officially open and operating.
Congratulations to the men and women that have worked hard for the project!
- The Pentagon announced Tuesday its intention to deploy a commercial microreactor within three years - see more below.
- ECA recommends including local leaders in letter to NASEO responding to Advanced Nuclear First Movers Orderbook Strategy RFI - read the full letter below.
- Nuclear startup, Radiant Industries hoping to break ground on new nuclear plant at former
Manhattan Project site in Tennessee as early as next year - 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.
CONGRATULATIONS – HANFORD WTP (THE HANFORD VIT PLANT) OFFICIALLY OPEN
After decades of planning, designing and redesigning, and construction, the world’s largest radioactive-waste treatment plant (“WTP”) for the U.S. Department of Energy which will process and stabilize much of the 56 million gallons
of radioactive and chemical waste currently stored in underground tanks at the Hanford Site is OPEN and operating! Congratulations to the men and women that have worked hard for the project. It is an amazing accomplishment for DOE, the State of Washington, the region and everyone that worked on the project. The opening of the facility moves the environmental cleanup at Hanford forward. The plant uses “vitrification technology”, which 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. This a momentous occasion in DOE accomplishments and is a historical moment for DOE EM. As Mayor Gerry, ECA Chair and Mayor of West Richland said today “I congratulate DOE and the many people and companies that had a hand in this first of kind engineering accomplishment in our community that will take liquid radioactive waste, turn
it into glass.” Seth Kirshenberg, Executive Director of ECA, who is in the Tri-Cities for this momentous occasion said “I congratulate the DOE Environmental Management Program and the leaders that have moved forward with the program. This program now works based on strong management and oversight and partnerships with the world class contractors and workers that designed and built the facility. This proves we
can build difficult projects with annual appropriations that are engineering models for other programs.” For more the on the WTP click here.
PENTAGON ANNOUNCES NEW NUCLEAR MICROREACTOR WITHIN NEXT THREE YEARSThe U.S. military is seeking to engage the nuclear industry, announcing Tuesday that it will deploy a commercial microreactor on a domestic base within three years. The Janus program follows President Trump's executive order directing the Department of Defense (DOD) to open an Army-regulated nuclear reactor by 2028. DOD said the initiative aims to enhance national security and “help companies close their business cases as they seek ‘Nth-of-a-kind’ production.” “The U.S. Army is leading the way on fielding innovative and disruptive technology,” said Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll. “We are shredding red tape and incubating next-generation capabilities in a variety of critical sectors, including nuclear power." The program will build commercial microreactors through a nimble, milestone-based contracting model in partnership with the Defense
Innovation Unit (DIU), accelerating delivery of advanced energy solutions. The reactors will be commercially owned-and-operated, with the milestone payments modeling this contracting mechanism off of NASA’s Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program. The Army will provide technical oversight and assistance, including support to the full
uranium fuel cycle and broader nuclear supply chain, ensuring the program strengthens both defense and U.S. industrial capabilities. The Janus Program will build on lessons learned from Project Pele, a transportable nuclear reactor which is the first electricity-producing Generation IV nuclear reactor to begin construction anywhere in the world outside of China. The Department of Energy laboratory teams which partnered on
the technical, legal, and policy aspects of Project Pele will also be working closely on the Janus Program. Notably, Janus seeks to deploy at least one next-generation, commercially owned and operated nuclear reactor at a domestic military base by September 2028. Read more on the announcement here.
DAY 15 OF THE GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWNToday, the Senate voted for the 9th time, again failing to end the government shutdown. This most recent vote resulted in a final tally of 51-44.
ECA RESPONDS TO NASEO REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
On October 10th, ECA responded to The National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO) Request for Information (RFI) on Advanced Nuclear First Movers Orderbook Strategy. The RFI, which extended its submission deadline to October 17, invited submissions to help inform the states on how best to create a coordinated orderbook for advanced nuclear projects – a mechanism expected to speed project development and lower costs. ECA's response highlighted the need to ensure local interests are integrated into orderbook planning for new nuclear build-outs. Writing, "Host communities are the front
line for quality of life, public health, land use, and emergency preparedness. Too often, mayors and local leaders are asked to react to plans after they are fully formed, leaving little room to shape outcomes or address local priorities. We urge advanced nuclear projects to consider governance frameworks for orderbooks include mechanisms for local consultations along state and federal stakeholders." To read the full letter on our website, click here.
NUCLEAR STARTUP TO BUILD REACTOR PLAN AT TENNESSEE MANHATTAN PROJECT SITE
California nuclear startup Radiant Industries announced on Monday that it would be building its first factory to mass produce micro-reactors in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, encompassing parts of two historic Manhattan Project sites, the Washington Examiner reports. The sites, K-27 and K-29, were home to 1940s uranium enrichment buildings that were a part of the Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plants with production halting
in the late 1980s, and demolition happening in 2016 and 2006 respectively. Radiant said it plans to bring nuclear technology back to the area within the next five years, and expects to break ground in early 2026 contingent on regulatory approval. “What was formerly the first Manhattan Project site will now be the site of the first portable
nuclear generator production,” Radiant CEO and founder Doug Bernauer said in a statement. “By 2028, we’ll be rolling out the first factory-built nuclear generator, and within a few years we’ll be producing over a dozen per year.” The company also hopes to test its first reactor sometime next year. The startup is one of several companies across the U.S. seeking to prove that small, advanced nuclear reactors can be
built more quickly and effectively than traditional large reactors — offering a solution to Big Tech and others looking to secure reliable power, and fast. Read the full story from the Washington Examiner here.
NEW NUCLEAR DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHT: KENTUCKY
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 Kentucky in the excerpt below: Paducah Laser Enrichment Facility - Global Laser Enrichment (GLE) has a contract with the U.S. Department of Energy to process uranium stored from past activities at the former
DOE Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant. GLE acquired a 665-acre site adjacent to the former DOE plant for the new facility and the company plans to submit their license application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in mid-2025. If constructed, the facility will produce approximately 5 million pounds of uranium annually, accounting for about 10% of the country’s uranium demand. The first-of-a-kind project would construct the first laser enrichment facility in the world. Read more about the project here. General Matter Uranium Enrichment Facility - US uranium enrichment startup General
Matter has signed a lease with the U.S. Department of Energy for the reuse of federal land at the former Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Kentucky for a new commercial uranium enrichment facility. General Matter acquired 100-acres of land at the site and provides the company with a minimum of 7,600 cylinders of existing uranium hexafluoride to supply fuel for the future re-enrichment operations. Construction of the new plant is expected to begin in 2026 with operations planned for
2034. Read more about the project here. To learn more about New
Nuclear projects in Kentucky 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!
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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