2024: The Year in Nuclear—April through June

Another calendar year has passed. Before heading too far into 2025, let's look back at what happened in 2024 in the nuclear community. In today's post, compiled from Nuclear News and Nuclear Newswire are what we feel are the top nuclear news stories from April through May 2024.

Stay tuned for the top stories from the rest of the past year.

April

Vogtle-4 enters commercial operation

Unit 4 at Georgia Power's Plant Vogtle entered commercial operation on April 29. The new unit can produce enough electricity to power an estimated 500,000 homes and businesses, according to the company. With all four units now in operation, Plant Vogtle, which is located near Waynesboro, Ga., is the largest nuclear generator in the nation, expected to produce more than 30 million megawatt-hours of electricity each year.

Kathryn Huff steps down from DOE Nuclear Energy post

After serving for two years as the DOE's assistant secretary in the Office of Nuclear Energy, Kathryn Huff decided to leave her post on May 3 to return to her role as an associate professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Huff started at the DOE in May 2021, initially serving as principal deputy assistant secretary and acting assistant secretary, and was confirmed by the Senate as assistant secretary in May 2022.

Upon Huff's departure, Mike Goff-who had been the principal deputy-stepped into the role of acting assistant secretary.

Constellation, PSEG Nuclear seek SLRs

Constellation Energy recently filed an application with the NRC for a subsequent license renewal for its Dresden nuclear power plant in Illinois. The extension would allow Dresden to run through 2051.

In addition, PSEG Nuclear LLC announced in April it would pursue subsequent license extensions to keep the three reactors at its Hope Creek and Salem plants operating for an additional 20 years. Both plants received initial license renewals years ago from the NRC-for Salem-1 and -2 on June 30, 2011, and for Hope Creek on July 20, 2011.

Military action continues to threaten Zaporizhzhia

IAEA director general Rafael Mariano Grossi visited Russia in early March to discuss Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant with Russian president Vladimir Putin. Since the meeting, Zaporizhzhia lost connection to its sole remaining backup power line on April 4 amid reports of military activity in the area as part of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. That left the plant extremely vulnerable, IAEA officials warned.

Agreement reached on deadlines for treating Hanford tank waste

The DOE, Washington State Department of Ecology, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced on April 29 that they reached an agreement on revised plans for managing millions of gallons of radioactive and chemical liquid waste stored in 177 underground tanks at the Hanford Site. The settlement agreement signed by the agencies proposes new and revised cleanup deadlines in the Tri-Party Agreement and the Washington v. Granholm consent decree. The agreement follows mediated negotiations that began in 2020, also known as Holistic Negotiations. According to the agencies, the landmark agreement provides "a realistic and achievable course" for cleaning up Hanford's liquid waste.

Bipartisan Fusion Energy Act pushes for regulatory clarity

Sen. Alex Padilla (D., Calif.) introduced the Fusion Energy Act (S. 4151) in April with a bipartisan group of cosponsors-John Cornyn (R., Texas), Cory Booker (D., N.J.), Todd Young (R., Ind.), and Patty Murray (D., Wash.). The legislation, which was signed into law in June along with the ADVANCE Act, codifies the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's regulatory authority over commercial fusion energy systems to streamline the creation of clear federal regulations that will support the development of commercial fusion power plants-and requires a report within one year on a study of risk- and performance-based, design-specific licensing frameworks for "mass-manufactured fusion machines."

The legislation aligns with the NRC's unanimous decision in April 2023 to create a regulatory framework for fusion systems under the commission's byproduct materials process-a move that would formally separate the regulatory frameworks for fusion systems and fission power plants.

May

NRC finalizes new rule on reactor license renewals

The NRC issued a final rule and corresponding update to the generic environmental impact statement (GEIS) the agency uses when considering applications to renew the operating licenses of nuclear power reactors. The four current NRC commissioners voted unanimously to approve the rule on May 16.

The rule revises the NRC's regulations under the Code of Federal Regulations Title 10, Part 51, "Environmental Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory Functions," to update the potential environmental impact issues that must be evaluated during the environmental review process. The NRC said its changes are based on experience gained from license renewal reviews the agency performed since the last update to its license renewal GEIS in 2013.

NRC accepts TerraPower's construction permit application

The NRC formally accepted TerraPower's Natrium sodium fast reactor construction permit application and is scheduling it for review. If approved, the construction permit will be the first ever issued by the NRC for a commercial non-light water power reactor. (The Atomic Energy Commission-predecessor to the NRC-issued a construction permit in 1962 for Peach Bottom-1, a high-temperature gas reactor, and in 1968 for the Fort St. Vrain nuclear power plant, also an HTGR. Both were non-LWR reactors that operated commercially.)

Biden launches nuclear power initiative in push to deployment

Nuclear energy advocates attended a White House Summit on Domestic Nuclear Deployment and will help advise a new federal initiative to support building new grid-scale nuclear reactors.

The May 29 summit showcased recent policy developments and new industry investments that have changed the playing field-for the better-for nuclear during the past few years. The White House called it "the largest sustained push to accelerate civil nuclear deployment in the United States in nearly five decades."

Russian uranium ban becomes law

President Biden signed the Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act on May 13, unlocking the $2.72 billion that Congress conditionally appropriated in March to increase production of low-enriched uranium and HALEU. From mining to enrichment, deconversion, and fabrication, the law could transform the front end of the nuclear fuel cycle, and not just in the United States.

The new law prohibiting unirradiated LEU produced in Russia allows for short-term waivers through 2027-subject to specific annual limits-if "no alternative viable source of low-enriched uranium is available to sustain the continued operation of a nuclear reactor or a United States nuclear energy company" or if LEU imports from Russia are "in the national interest." The ban is set to expire at the end of 2040.

DOE gets CD-0 approval for interim storage site

In May, the DOE received initial approval, known as "Critical Decision-0" (CD-0), for siting a federal consolidated interim storage facility for commercial spent nuclear fuel. The first of five milestones the DOE uses for managing projects, CD-0 recognizes the fundamental need for the project, even if a specific facility or technology has yet to be chosen. With CD-0 approval, DOE teams can begin work on research and development, conceptual design, management plans, and cost and schedule estimates. While authorization from Congress would still be required before the DOE can begin construction of an interim storage facility, the department has embarked on a consent-based process to site such a facility.

June

DOE to invest $900M in next-generation nuclear

The DOE plans to invest up to $900 million to support the initial deployment of light water-cooled SMR technology. On June 17, the DOE issued a notice of intent to fund projects from President Biden's infrastructure law with the goal of accelerating advanced nuclear projects to support energy infrastructure. The department estimates the country will need up to 950 GW of reliable and clean energy to help reach the goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. Nuclear currently generates 18.6 percent of U.S. electricity.

TerraPower breaks ground on reactor project in Wyoming

A ceremony in Kemmerer, Wyo., on June 10 marked the official start of construction of TerraPower's planned Natrium reactor demonstration project. While currently awaiting final review from the NRC, TerraPower is moving forward with nonnuclear construction work at a retired coal plant near Kemmerer. The groundbreaking brought together TerraPower leaders, government officials, Natrium project partners, industry advocates, and community supporters.

New fusion strategies and partnerships announced at White House event

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and the DOE cohosted a livestreamed event on June 6 to announce a new DOE fusion energy strategy and new public-private partnership programs. The event was billed as a celebration of the two-year anniversary of the administration's launch of the U.S. Bold Decadal Vision for Commercial Fusion Energy.

Eight companies were selected for the Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program in May 2023, and during his opening remarks, DOE deputy secretary David Turk announced that, one year later, all eight selected teams were officially signed awardees.

At the event the DOE released two guiding documents: an agency-wide DOE Fusion Energy Strategy 2024 and a new plan for the Office of Science's Fusion Energy Sciences program: Building Bridges: A Vision for the Office of Fusion Energy Sciences.

Army solicits bids for microreactors to site at military bases

The U.S. Army asked nuclear companies in June to submit proposals for microreactors that can be commissioned at military bases to provide clean, reliable power at two domestic military sites.

The bid solicitation window was short-just two weeks-but the army asked for very high-level proposals from advanced nuclear companies who are ready to jump into action. Following the initial submission period, top contenders for the project will be invited back for pitch sessions; full contracts then will be negotiated.

Read more from 2024:

• 2024: The Year in Nuclear-January through March