By Jack Devanney Engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractors have led recent nuclear plant projects into disasters. Deca-billion dollar cost overruns. Schedules doubling. Some projects being cancelled after squandering billions of dollars. Giant corporations facing bankruptcy. This raises the obvious question: if Westinghouse can’t build a standard nuclear power plant, how in the world will a start up like ThorCon […]
Advanced Atomic Technologies
Can Gas Turbines Using Nuclear Fuel Change The Energy Game?
Disclosure: Rod Adams founded the now defunct Adams Atomic Engines, Inc. His company developed nuclear gas turbines from 1993-2010. It is a modern day truism that natural gas power plants are cheap while nuclear power plants are expensive. Natural gas plants can also be built in a variety of sizes by a larger number of suppliers […]
House Science, Space And Technology Gets Sage Advice From Energy Innovators
The witnesses testifying at Tuesday’s hearing on Energy Innovation in front of the House Committee on Science, Space & Technology provided forceful and specific examples of the important role that the Department of Energy has played in supporting commercially valuable research and development. They shared their thoughts about ways to improve outcomes, streamline processes, and […]
Lightbridge Gaining Momentum In Drive to Commercialize Fuel
I received a pleasant surprise near the end of May while performing a spot check of my modest portfolio of individual stocks. Lightbridge (NASDAQ: LTBR), a holding that hasn’t performed well for several years, had nearly doubled since my check a week before. Since then it has ratcheted up another 20% or so. My online […]
Commercial supplies of HALEU needed to enable advanced reactors
Jake DeWitte and Caroline Cochran, the cofounders of Oklo, a start up company that is developing a 1-2 MWe nuclear reactor-based power system for remote areas, have been credited with drawing attention to a problem that can be solved by a government policy decision. “Nearly all advanced reactors have a need for low enriched fuel […]
Terrestrial Energy making progress towards commercializing Advanced Small Modular Reactor
Simon Irish, the Chief Executive of Terrestrial Energy, provided a project update to the 7th Annual SMR and Advanced Reactor Summit organized by Nuclear Energy Insider. What Is Terrestrial Energy Doing To Move Its Design To Market? His company is developing an Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSRTM). He noted that he had last provided information […]
Nimble creators plan to avoid some of the struggles plaguing extra-large nuclear projects
In late March, Senator Lisa Murkowski and her staff played host to some of the leading thinkers in the growing community of people who believe that nuclear energy is too important to fail without trying to do things both differently and better. The occasion of the meeting was the introduction and release of a new […]
NRC accepted NuScale’s DCA. Will it complete its review on time? Estimated completion July 2020
Yesterday, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission accepted NuScale’s 12,000 page design certification application (DCA). That action starts the safety determination process, which is scheduled to take 40 months. Completed on December 31, 2016 and submitted to the NRC on January 12, 2017, NuScale’s certification application has been subjected to a 60 day checklist review designed to […]
Will be catching up with advanced and small reactor innovators in Atlanta
Nuclear Energy Insider, a UK based trade publication and conference organizer that shares an acronym name with the Nuclear Energy Institute, will be holding its 7th annual early spring event focusing on small and advanced reactors. The Summit includes a face-paced, two day agenda on March 30-31. The venue is the conveniently located Westing Buckhead, […]
ThorCon and Indonesia moving forward smartly on manufactured nuclear plants
Three state-owned Indonesian companies, Pertamina, PLN and INUKI, have completed the ThorCon technology pre-feasibility study agreed to in the Memorandum of Understanding with ThorCon International. The ten-month study concluded that the ThorCon molten salt reactor design could deliver safe, cheap, clean energy, could be built now, would be economically viable, and would have the potential […]
U.S. Shouldn’t Depend On Russian Reactors. Restore Our World Class Fast Flux Test Facility
Senator Carper (D-DE) asked each witness at a March 8 hearing about NEIMA – Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act – to give one suggestion for improving the bill. If asked, my answer would be to include findings that emphasize the importance of U.S. government-owned testing facilities that are capable of supporting the NRC licensing […]
Bipartisan pro-nuclear love fest at Senate EPW hearing
Yesterday, on International Women’s Day, the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) committee held a hearing that provided both visible and audible proof that times are changing in the political and public acceptance of nuclear energy. The committee organized the hearing in order to gather information and invited stakeholder feedback related to the recently reintroduced […]
