Atomic Show #323 – Julie Kozeracki, Director of Strategy, DOE Loan Programs Office
Julie Kozeracki was the lead author for a U.S. Department of Energy strategy document titled Pathways to Commercial Liftoff: Advanced Nuclear published in September 2024. The document was the result of a multi-agency, multi-lab effort to update a previously issued report. During our conversation, Kozeracki described how the report was informed by changes in the…
Atomic Show #322 – Westinghouse’s eVinci micro reactor
Westinghouse’s eVinci is a 15 MWth, 5 MWe micro reactor. Westinghouse often refers to it as a nuclear battery. Unlike conventional nuclear power plants, eVinci uses no water and doesn’t produce steam. The…
Atomic Show #321 – Andrew Harmon, VP Natura Resources
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued a construction permit on September 16, 2024 to Abilene Christian University (ACU) to build a molten salt research reactor. This marked the first university research reactor approval…
Matthew Marzano brings valuable education and experience to his potential role as NRC Commissioner
Matthew Marzano has been nominated to be the next Commissioner for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). He brings a unique collection of attributes and experience that will make him a valuable contributor to…
Atomic Show #320 – Magnus Mori, Urenco
Urenco is one of the few companies in the world that enriches uranium. It’s one of an even smaller group of enrichers that aren’t owned by the Russian, Chinese or Iranian governments. It…
Atomic Show #323 – Julie Kozeracki, Director of Strategy, DOE Loan Programs Office
Julie Kozeracki was the lead author for a U.S. Department of Energy strategy document titled Pathways to Commercial Liftoff: Advanced Nuclear published in September 2024. The document was the result of a multi-agency,…
Atomic Show #322 – Westinghouse’s eVinci micro reactor
Westinghouse’s eVinci is a 15 MWth, 5 MWe micro reactor. Westinghouse often refers to it as a nuclear battery. Unlike conventional nuclear power plants, eVinci uses no water and doesn’t produce steam. The…
Atomic Show #321 – Andrew Harmon, VP Natura Resources
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued a construction permit on September 16, 2024 to Abilene Christian University (ACU) to build a molten salt research reactor. This marked the first university research reactor approval…
Turning small modular reactor concepts into reality in Idaho Falls
In the past half dozen years, the term “small modular reactor (SMR)” has entered the nuclear energy lexicon. Numerous projects have been initiated to develop various concepts, all aimed at producing nuclear reactor…
China’s high temperature reactor – pebble bed modular (HTR-PM) achieves its first criticality
On the morning of September 12, 2021, reactor number 1 of the eagerly awaited HTR-PM project was taken critical for the first time. Initial criticality for any new reactor is a big deal…
Valuable Tool for Antarctic Research or Costly Waste?
Before the discovery of nuclear fission, the only power source capable of supplying reliable electrical energy in remote locations was a combustion engine. Because of its compact nature compared to a coal fired…
NRC’s imposition of Aircraft Impact rule played a major role in Vogtle project delays and VC Summer failure
Projects that last as long as building nuclear reactors in the U.S. are analogous to extreme endurance competitions in which overall progress is the sum of all stages of the race. There is…
Tragic day in South Carolina as 5,000 people lose their jobs at VC Summer
Yesterday, about 5,000 people working on the VC Summer expansion project learned that the owners had issued stop work orders effective immediately. They started the day with important jobs paying good wages and…
Vogtle continuation decision tells me America still produces leaders that can make complicated, long-term decisions
The Georgia Public Service Commission unanimously approved a plan to continue the Vogtle Expansion Project. Georgia Power, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Southern Company, immediately accepted the deal contained in the plan…
Smoking gun – CEO of U.S.-Central Asia Biofuels Ltd decrying nuclear energy
A commenter on my last smoking gun report claimed that it did not provide direct evidence of antinuclear activity by the beneficiaries – in that case, the people selling LNG tankers to a…
Energy Supply Worries Are Over! Natural Gas Resource Estimate Increased by 3%!
I am in a snarky mood this morning. Please forgive me while I try to explain the sources of my wry amusement – and my continuing worries that keep me from getting a…
Smoking Gun – Former Oil and Gas Executive Recorded in Opposition to Nuclear Energy Development
A story titled GOP House candidate Bill Flores backtracks on loans for nuclear power plants caught my eye this morning. It tells the story of Bill Flores, who is running for congress in…
Investing in Nuclear
Nuclear investments – enabling the transition to a low-carbon economy
Parnassus Versus Green Century: A Contrast in Styles
Cross-posted from Nucleation Capital June, July and August of 2023 were the three hottest months the Earth has ever seen by such a large margin, it left climate scientists agog. Climate disasters are abounding apace, with the U.S. hit by 23 large-scale disasters, a record-breaking year already. In Pakistan, extreme rainfall and flooding affected 33…
How Hot is Cold Fusion?
The 24th International Conference on Cold Fusion (ICCF24) was held at the lovely and spacious Computer History Museum in Mountain View, CA over four days in late July. As a venture investor looking at evaluating and investing in a wide range of advanced nuclear ventures, I was invited to participate and/or sponsor the event. While…
Rod Adams
Managing Partner, Nucleation Capital, a venture fund enabling broader investor access to a diverse portfolio of advanced nuclear energy and deep decarbonization ventures. Nuclear energy expert and former submarine Engineer Officer with nuclear propulsion plant experience. Founder, Adams Atomic Engines, Inc. Host and producer, The Atomic Show Podcast.