The Duck Curve#nuclear
PJM says Oklo's fix left the 750-MW model unstable, asks FERC to deny
PJM asked FERC on September 4, 2026 to deny Oklo's complaint over the withdrawal of its 750-MW project C01-1735 from Cycle 01. PJM says Oklo's response to a May 15 deficiency notice removed excitation-limiter models from the synchronous units and that the model showed an unstable response when PJM tested the whole facility at 750 MW; it says its tariff allows one cure round, that four other Oklo projects totaling 900 MW advanced, and that reinstatement could delay Phase I, set to start September 28, by as much as two months. It asks FERC to act by September 14 if it grants relief.
NRC proposes rule package for existing reactors and new applicants
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced on September 11, 2026 a proposed rule, docket NRC-2025-1138, that it calls a broad overhaul of its reactor licensing and oversight regulations under Executive Order 14300, for existing plants and new applicants. The release lists ten changes "among other things," including removing the expiration date for standard design approvals; comments run 30 days after Federal Register publication, which the NRC's tracker estimates for September 25, 2026, with a final rule estimated for March 31, 2027.
Department of War plans shore-based Navy microreactor at Crane by 2028
The Department of War announced on September 9, 2026 the planned installation of an advanced nuclear Micro Modular Reactor at Naval Weapons Station Crane, Indiana, no later than September 2028, executed through the Army's Janus Program with the Navy and the State of Indiana. The release describes the reactor as commercially owned and operated and as the first power-producing reactor installed in Indiana, and names no vendor, design, output, or cost; an Army official's quote cites the Army's "regulatory authorities" without saying who licenses the unit.
Centrus signs HALEU supply contract for Radiant's Kaleidos microreactors
Centrus Energy said in a Form 8-K filed September 9, 2026 that it has signed a definitive multi-year contract to supply high-assay low-enriched uranium for multiple of Radiant Industries' Kaleidos microreactors, with deliveries scheduled to begin before the end of the decade and Radiant prepayments supporting Centrus's domestic commercial enrichment capacity program. The release gives no quantity or value. The same day Centrus priced a $500 million public offering of shares and warrants, its second enrichment contract with customer prepayments in five weeks after X-energy's on August 6.
CU Boulder preprint says SMR operating costs, not capex, drive poor returns
A preprint posted to arXiv on September 8, 2026 by Pradyumna Rao, Daniel T. Kaffine, and Bri-Mathias Hodge of the University of Colorado Boulder finds that fuel and operating costs, not investment costs, make small modular reactors uneconomical at manufacturer-advertised costs in US wholesale and capacity markets: almost all concepts have discounted payback periods longer than their technical lifetimes on energy revenue, 18 of 22 do not reach a 20-year payback at current production tax credit levels, and at advertised costs SMRs are about as profitable as advanced estimates of the AP1000.
DOE closes loan of up to $1.9B for Duane Arnold nuclear restart
The US Department of Energy's Office of Energy Dominance Financing announced on September 8, 2026 the financial close of a loan of up to $1.9 billion to NextEra Energy for the restart of the 615 MW Duane Arnold Energy Center in Linn County, Iowa, shut down since August 2020. NextEra plans to restart the plant no later than the first quarter of 2029, pending regulatory approvals, and NRC staff expect to issue final licensing decisions by January 29, 2028. Google holds a 25-year agreement for power from the plant, with Central Iowa Power Cooperative buying the remainder on the same terms.
Siemens Energy's Newcastle works to build turbines for UK's first SMRs
Rolls-Royce SMR announced on September 3, 2026 that key steam turbine components for its first three reactors at the Gwyndod project on Anglesey, North Wales, including high-pressure turbines and valve casings, will be manufactured at Siemens Energy's Newcastle site, the former CA Parsons Works. The company says the work will support more than 550 jobs and is the first time such components will be produced for a small modular reactor anywhere in Europe.
NRC proposes groundwater rule for uranium in-situ recovery sites
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced on September 1, 2026 a proposed rule, docket NRC-2025-1204, to set what it calls risk-informed groundwater protection criteria for uranium in-situ recovery facilities and to streamline extensions of decommissioning timelines for reactors and materials facilities. The rule text had not been published in the Federal Register as of September 4; comments are due 30 days after publication. The NRC's rulemaking tracker says the rule would reduce post-restoration monitoring, and the three industry letters in the docket asked for a narrowly targeted rule.
Studsvik picks GE Vernova Hitachi, Samsung C&T for four Swedish BWRX-300s
Studsvik AB announced on September 3, 2026 an exclusive agreement with GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy, Samsung C&T, GE Vernova Financial Services, and DS Investment Partners to advance an initial four-unit BWRX-300 project of approximately 1,200 MWe at either its Nyköping site or the Målma site in Valdemarsvik, Sweden, with the first unit expected in operation in the mid-2030s. The agreement is not a final investment decision or an authorization to construct; both sites await Swedish government approval, and Studsvik applied for state financing support on June 12, 2026.
MGE Energy buys into Realta Fusion to explore 200-MWe Wisconsin plant
Realta Fusion and Madison Gas and Electric announced a strategic partnership on September 2, 2026 to explore joint development of a 200-MWe fusion power plant in Wisconsin. MGE Energy made a direct equity investment of undisclosed size in the first phase, and the utility agreed to provide equipment, engineering, and technical support plus help with siting, permitting, interconnection, and financing; Realta CEO Kieran Furlong told Wisconsin Public Radio the mid-2030s is a reasonable target.
Holtec begins loading fuel into the Palisades reactor
Holtec announced on August 31, 2026 that fuel loading has begun at the Palisades nuclear plant in Covert Township, Michigan: a core of 204 new and partially used assemblies designed, per the company, to support an 805-MW electric output (ANS Nuclear Newswire describes the unit as 777 MWe; neither figure is labeled gross or net). Holtec says Palisades is advancing toward becoming the first US commercial nuclear plant to return to service after entering decommissioning; the NRC reauthorized power operations by letter dated July 24, 2025.
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Oklo asks FERC to reinstate its 750-MW project in PJM's queue
Oklo filed an emergency complaint at FERC on August 28, 2026 (docket EL26-101-000) asking the commission to order PJM to reinstate a 750-MW mixed-technology generation project, combining advanced nuclear, natural gas, and fuel cells, that PJM withdrew from the first cycle of its reformed interconnection study. Oklo says the withdrawal was unlawful and would delay the project by at least 14 months; it wants PJM to answer by September 4, 2026.
Tennessee issues Type One Energy a fusion-specific license
Tennessee regulators announced on August 31, 2026 what the state calls the nation's first license issued under a fusion-specific regulatory framework: a byproduct material license for Type One Energy's Project Infinity at TVA's retired Bull Run coal site in Clinton. The company says it intends to break ground in 2026 and expects a full startup by 2034.
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Standard Nuclear to supply Antares up to eight tons of TRISO fuel
Standard Nuclear announced a binding TRISO fuel supply agreement with Antares Nuclear on August 27, 2026: a minimum of one metric ton of uranium as a firm commitment, plus customer options for up to seven more, with the release describing deliveries through 2035. It is the second definitive TRISO supply agreement the company has announced in August 2026, after an August 20 deal with Radiant Industries.
Five US microreactor designs went critical in the summer of 2026
Five US microreactor designs completed first zero-power criticality tests between June and August 2026, all under DOE authorization rather than NRC licenses: Antares Nuclear's Mark-0, Valar Atomics' Ward 250, Deployable Energy's Unity, Aalo Atomics' Critical Test Reactor, and Westinghouse's eVinci. Four went critical at DOE-complex sites and Valar's at the Utah San Rafael Energy Lab, with the Valar details per POWER magazine's account. Radiant shipped its 1 MWe Kaleidos to Idaho National Laboratory's DOME test bed in August 2026 for the field's first full-power test campaign, targeted for completion in the third quarter of 2026, per Radiant's announcement, and BWXT plans formal testing of the Army's Project Pele prototype as early as 2027. Deployment money so far is federal: the Army's Janus program totals up to $2.2 billion across five vendors, with a first reactor targeted to operate by September 30, 2028; no nuclear microreactor supplies power to a US commercial grid today, per AP.
US uranium output more than tripled in 2025 as enrichment plants line up
US uranium concentrate production more than tripled in 2025 to 2.1 million pounds of U3O8, the most since 2017, according to EIA data published August 28, 2026. The same day, the NRC published an order aligning hearing procedures for two pending uranium enrichment plant applications: Global Laser Enrichment's Paducah, Kentucky facility and Orano's Project IKE in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
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Marathon Fusion says its plasma centrifuge enriched lithium and hydrogen
Marathon Fusion announced on August 27, 2026 that it enriched hydrogen and lithium isotopes in its plasma centrifuge, aiming to cut tritium flow rates and processing system size in fusion plants by a factor of ten or more. Covalent certified the lithium-6 enrichment; the hydrogen separation results are not yet independently verified, according to Heatmap News.
US Army awards up to $2.2 billion for microreactors at five bases
The US Army selected five vendors on August 26, 2026 under its Janus Program: Antares Nuclear at Fort Bragg, BWXT at Fort Campbell, General Atomics at Fort Hood, Radiant Industries at Fort Benning, and Westinghouse Government Services at Fort Drum, with up to a combined $2.2 billion in milestone-based funding across fiscal 2027 through 2031. The Army expects more than 20 microreactors across installations and targets a first reactor operating by September 30, 2028; the reactors will be licensed by the Army rather than the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, per AP.
Pacific Fusion breaks ground on a $1 billion fusion campus in Albuquerque
Pacific Fusion broke ground on August 25, 2026 on a $1 billion Research and Manufacturing Campus at Mesa del Sol in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where it will build its Demonstration System: a pulser-driven inertial fusion machine designed to achieve net facility gain by 2030 and fusion bursts exceeding 100 megajoules. The National Nuclear Security Administration and the company signed a memorandum of understanding on fusion collaboration the same day.
LLNL and Pacific Fusion push Sirius pulser past 3,000 shots
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Pacific Fusion completed a 3,000-shot reliability campaign on the Sirius pulsed-power prototype, reaching 60 gigawatts per 100-nanosecond pulse at 95 percent energy efficiency by May 15, 2026. The CRADA-funded results, published jointly by the lab and the private fusion company on July 16-17, 2026, are the data behind Pacific Fusion's plan to scale the impedance-matched Marx generator architecture toward a full high-yield fusion driver.