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U.S. NRC Approves Four SMR-300 Reactors at Oyster Creek Site in New Jersey

A retired nuclear power plant in New Jersey is getting a new lease on life with the construction of small modular reactors. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has approved the construction of four advanced small modular reactors (SMRs) at the site of the Oyster Creek nuclear power plant in New Jersey. The plant is currently in decommissioning, with more than half of the dismantling work completed. The Oyster Creek Generating Station, which began construction in December 1969 and operated for nearly 49 years until its closure in September 2018, was once the longest-operating commercial nuclear power plant in the United States. It produced over 192 terawatt-hours of carbon-free electricity in total. Supported by New Jersey's pro-nuclear legislation and stable local backing, Holtec plans to build...

2026-08-05

U.S. and Paraguay Sign Civil Nuclear Energy Cooperation Agreement

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Paraguayan Foreign Minister Ruben Ramirez Lezcano signed a strategic civil nuclear energy cooperation memorandum of understanding in Washington on August 4. According to relevant information, the two sides signed what is commonly referred to as the "123 Agreement," which establishes the basic framework for bilateral cooperation in the field of civil nuclear energy. The 123 Agreement originates from Section 123 of the U.S. Atomic Energy Act, passed in 1954. This provision authorizes the United States to transfer civil nuclear technology for energy or scientific purposes to partner countries under specific conditions. As a prerequisite, the recipient country must comply with International Atomic Energy...

2026-08-05

NRC Preliminary Assessment Finds No Significant Environmental Impacts from Duane Arnold Nuclear Plant Restart

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued a draft environmental assessment for the restart of the Duane Arnold nuclear power plant, preliminarily concluding that the project would not result in significant environmental impacts. NextEra Energy plans to restart the Duane Arnold nuclear power plant in Palo, Iowa, as early as 2029, and has made significant progress. The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Advantage Financing participated as a cooperating agency in drafting the environmental assessment, as the department is considering providing financial support for the restart project. According to a notice in the Federal Register, NRC staff evaluated the potential impacts of restarting the 615-megawatt Duane Arnold nuclear power plant on land use, meteorology, air quality and...

2026-08-05

U.S. Team Proposes New In-Situ Cleaning Method for Porous Tungsten Walls in Fusion Devices

Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, Princeton University, and Pennsylvania State University have proposed an in-situ cleaning method for fusion system wall materials, which uses heating combined with neon plasma to remove contaminants from the surface of porous tungsten materials after components are installed and sealed within a vacuum chamber. The research findings have been published in *Nuclear Materials and Energy*. Image credit: Kyle Palmer / PPPL Communications Department. Fusion system walls must withstand extreme temperatures. Liquid lithium is considered a promising wall protection material, which can be retained within porous tungsten wall tile structures much like water absorbed by a sponge. However, this...

2026-08-05

Aternium to Build First U.S. Heavy Water and High-Purity Hydrogen Production Facility in Delaware

Aternium announced on August 4 that it has selected Dover, Delaware, as the site for its first commercial heavy water and electrolytic hydrogen production facility. The company has reached a definitive sales agreement for a parcel within Garrison Oak Technical Park, with the transaction expected to close by mid-Q4 2026. The project will serve as Aternium's flagship production initiative in the United States, planned to produce heavy water (deuterium oxide) and high-purity hydrogen. According to company disclosures, the project is expected to bring at least $226 million in capital investment to Dover, create dozens of direct and supporting jobs, and generate hundreds of construction jobs during the build-out phase...

2026-08-05

Westinghouse and Amentum Expand Cooperation to Support Scaled Deployment of APX Technology Platform

Westinghouse Electric Company announced on August 4 that it has reached a series of agreements with Amentum to expand cooperation around Westinghouse's APX technology platform, enhance the scaled deployment capability of AP1000 reactors, and advance the development and licensing of the AP300 Small Modular Reactor (SMR). Under the agreements, the two companies will collaborate to advance AP300 SMR regulatory approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Westinghouse stated that obtaining regulatory approval is a critical step for AP300's market entry, and Amentum's engineering capabilities and nuclear project experience will support these efforts. Westinghouse Electric...

2026-08-05

U.S. Navy Virginia-class nuclear submarine USS Vermont departs Yokosuka on August 1

The U.S. Virginia-class nuclear submarine USS Vermont departed Yokosuka Port on August 1. The city of Yokosuka disclosed the information on August 3. It is reported that USS Vermont entered Yokosuka Port on July 24 and departed at 1:49 p.m. on August 1. This port call was for crew rest, resupply, and maintenance. USS Vermont is one of the Virginia-class nuclear submarines, with hull number SSN-792. This was the second time USS Vermont entered Yokosuka Port. The first visit was on December 9, 2024. The previous port call also focused on rest, resupply, and maintenance. Since the beginning of this year, seven U.S. nuclear-powered vessels have visited Yokosuka Port...

2026-08-04

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Proposed Rule to Update Radioactive Material Transport Regulations for New Reactor Technologies

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued a proposed rule aimed at updating regulations for the transport of radioactive material to accommodate the development of new reactor technologies. The existing regulatory framework has not fully kept pace with advances in nuclear technology, particularly as microreactors and other advanced reactor types present new challenges to current rules. Approximately three million packages containing radioactive material are transported across the United States each year, and this vast logistics operation has been managed by federal agencies for decades. The NRC's proposed rule addresses a specific issue: how to safely transport new types of nuclear reactors and their associated radioactive materials. Microreactors are compact, factory-manufactured...

2026-08-03

South Korea's Trade Minister Meets Governors of 11 U.S. States to Expand Nuclear Power and Shipbuilding Cooperation

South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy stated on August 2 that the Trade Negotiation Minister attended the 2026 National Governors Association (NGA) Summer Meeting in Oklahoma City from July 30 to August 1, during which he held a series of meetings with governors from 11 states including Tennessee, Colorado, Wyoming, North Carolina, Delaware, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Utah, Maryland, South Dakota, and Vermont, calling for expanded cooperation in high-tech and strategic industries such as nuclear power, shipbuilding, and batteries, and requesting support from state governments for Korean companies' investments and local operations in the U.S. Reports indicate that the U.S. Department of Energy is advancing the Nuclear Life-cycle Innovation Campus (NLIC) project, and on the 28th of last month...

2026-08-03

U.S. to Resume Shipping Transuranic Waste Drums from Savannah River Site to WIPP for Permanent Disposal

The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management (EM) will resume shipping remote-handled transuranic waste drums from the Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico for permanent disposal on July 28, 2026. Prior to resuming shipments, relevant teams have completed flammable gas analysis, confirming that these waste containers meet safety requirements for transport to the underground disposal facility. Flammable gas sampling is a critical safety step before transuranic waste transportation. Workers assess potential combustion risks inside containers by detecting gases such as hydrogen, methane, and volatile organic compounds, and confirm their safety during transport and disposal...

2026-08-03

U.S. Department of Energy Highlights Progress in Legacy Waste Cleanup and Medical Isotope R&D

Recently, senior officials from the U.S. Department of Energy attended an event hosted by the U.S. House Nuclear Cleanup Caucus, presenting the application progress of legacy nuclear waste cleanup efforts in medical isotope R&D and future energy technologies. The event, themed "DOE's Isotope Mission: Legacy Cleanup Saves Lives, Empowers America's Future," focused on how nuclear cleanup missions align with isotope production and medical research. DOE's Under Secretary for Science Dario Gil, along with Oak Ridge National Laboratory Environmental Management Office Manager Eric Olds and Savannah River Operations Office Manager Edwin DeShon, jointly attended the event. DeShon...

2026-08-03

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Signs Memorandums of Understanding with Coast Guard and Marine Minerals Administration to Strengthen Offshore Nuclear Energy Cooperation

Recently, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) signed Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and the newly established Marine Minerals Administration (MMA), respectively, aimed at strengthening coordination and cooperation on civilian offshore nuclear projects. These initiatives come at a time of growing interest in nuclear technology within the commercial shipping sector, including projects such as nuclear-powered vessels and floating nuclear power plants. The agreement with the Coast Guard updates a previous agreement signed with the Atomic Energy Commission in 1973, aiming to modernize regulatory processes and ensure effective management of the design, construction, operation, and oversight of civilian nuclear reactors at sea. Meanwhile, the NRC's cooperation with the MMA focuses on clarifying jurisdictional issues for any potential nuclear projects on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

2026-08-03

U.S. Explores New Methods for Lunar Ice Detection Using Synchrotron X-ray Microtomography and Seismic Models

On July 31, researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, in collaboration with scientists from the University of Maryland and the University of Hawaii, proposed a new method for locating subsurface ice deposits on the Moon using seismic waves. The findings, published in the journal Science Advances, are expected to provide a reference for interpreting detection data and locating water resources in future lunar landing missions. The research focuses on how subsurface lunar materials respond to seismic waves. The team developed computational models to predict the behavior of lunar subsurface media of varying compositions under seismic wave excitation. Experimental results showed differences in seismic response between ice-bearing and dry rocks, indicating that seismological methods have the potential to identify ice layers buried beneath lunar regolith and rock.

2026-08-01

U.S. Team Traces Source of Anomalous Gamma Rays from Zinc-70, Nuclear Magnetic Transitions May Improve Models of Heavy Element Formation

An international research team led by scientists from the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB) at Michigan State University has recently identified the source of the large number of low-energy gamma rays emitted by zinc-70 nuclei. The study suggests that magnetic transitions occurring within the nucleus are the key reason for this anomalous signal enhancement. The findings were published in the journal Nature under the title "Magnetic character of the low-energy enhancement in 70Zn." Gamma rays are electromagnetic radiation released when excited atomic nuclei transition to lower, more stable energy levels. For a long time, scientists have observed an anomalous increase in the number of low-energy gamma rays in some atomic nuclei, known as the low-energy enhancement (LEE), but its physical mechanism had remained unclear...

2026-08-02

U.S. Navy Awards General Dynamics Electric Boat Contract for Construction of 14 Nuclear Submarines

General Dynamics Electric Boat announced that the U.S. Navy has awarded it a contract package for the construction of 14 nuclear submarines, with a total contract value of $76.6 billion. According to information released by the company, under this announced U.S. Navy contract framework, General Dynamics Electric Boat will receive $29.5 billion for the construction of five Columbia-class submarines, and an additional $42.1 billion for the construction of nine Virginia-class submarines. The contract also includes funding to support shipyard infrastructure construction. General Dynamics Electric Boat serves as the prime contractor for the program. A portion of the construction work will be subcontracted to Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries. ...

2026-08-01