The Breakthrough Institute, Clean Air Task Force, ClearPath, Nuclear Innovation Alliance, and Third Way have joined together to issue a statement that says that delays in finalizing a regulatory rulemaking on risk-informed emergency preparedness has already caused significant regulatory uncertainty for developers.
     The proposed rulemaking is detailed in a document titled Emergency Preparedness Requirements for Small Modular Reactors and Other New Technologies. It would amend the U.S. regulations to add new emergency preparedness requirements for small modular reactors (SMRs) and other new technologies such as non-light-water reactor. It would also enable emergency plannings zones fore such reactors to be scalable to take into account their smaller size, lower power densities and lower probability of severe accidents.
     The proposed rule was published for public comment in May 2020. The comment period ended in September of that year. The final rule package was submitted to the NRC commissioners for approval in January of 2022.
      The five pro-nuclear groups say in a joint letter to the US regulator that “Commissioners are generally expected to vote on final rules in 60 days, but in this case the final rule publication date has been extended multiple times without explanation. Currently, the NRC rulemaking page says the final rule is scheduled for publication on 3 January, 2024. If this timeline holds, it would mean a duration of over 2 years since the final rule was submitted to the Commission for approval. This is in stark contrast to the NRC’s Efficiency principle of good regulation which states ‘Regulatory decisions should be made without undue delay’.” 
     The extensive delay is causing regulatory uncertainty for developers who are preparing licensing applications according to the group. Until a final decision is made, future applicants find themselves faced with the prospect of preparing two emergency preparedness. One plan would be based on the assumption that the rule will be in effect when they submit their applications. Another contingency plan would be drawn up in case the rule is not yet finished.
     This uncertainty has already resulted in applicants changing their emergency preparedness approach during the pre-application engagement process. Some delayed pre-application engagement until there is a greater certainty around what procedures will be available. It creates an extra burden for NRC staff, reduces the value of pre-application engagement for applicants and the NRC. The situation discourages future applicants. It is also contrary to the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act of 2019. This bill directed the NRC to develop and implement strategies for the increasing use of risk-informed and performance-based licensing processes within two years. The groups said, “The NRC is over two and a half years late on this statutory deadline.”
      “A decision on the final emergency preparedness rule would increase regulatory predictability, reduce the regulatory burden for the applicant and the staff, and align with Congressional direction. More efficient and effective licensing contributes to meeting national environmental and energy security objectives. The Commission should act expeditiously to approve the final rule and update the associated Regulatory Guide 4.7, in the public interest.”

     The U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has invited comments on the propose Cameco and Brookfields Renewable Partners acquisition of Westinghouse Electric Company. The CMS is considering whether the deal “may be expected to result in a substantial lessening of competition in the United Kingdom.”
     In a statement posted on its website, the CMA said that  for the next two weeks, until the 16th of August, it is running an “Invitation to Comment” on the purchase. It was  “considering whether it is, or may be the case, that this transaction, if carried into effect, will result in the creation of a relevant merger situation under the merger provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 and, if so, whether the creation of that situation may be expected to result, in a substantial lessening of competition within any market or markets in the United Kingdom for goods or services. To assist it with this assessment, the CMA invites comments on the transaction from any interested party.”
     Cameco said that this was part of the standard regulatory approval process for such transactions. It expects to close the deal by the end of this year.
      The proposed deal was unveiled in October of 2022. It calls for a strategic partnership of Cameco and Brookfield Partners to acquire Westinghouse for a total enterprise value of eight billion dollars. It would allocate fourty-nine percent of Westinghouse ownership to Cameco and fifty one percent ownership to Brookfield Renewable and its institutional partners.
     Westinghouse is one of the world’s biggest nuclear services businesses. It can trace its energy industry roots back more than one hundred years. Brookfield Business Partners acquired Westinghouse out of bankruptcy in 2018. Today, Westinghouse has four key business lines. These include providing services for outages and maintenance, engineering solutions and replacement components and parts; long-term contracting for the manufacture and installation of fuel assemblies and ancillary equipment for light-water reactors; designing, engineering and supporting the development of new nuclear reactors; and providing environmental services which support nuclear sustainability, environmental stewardship and remediation. It is the original equipment manufacturer for around half of the world’s nuclear power plants.
     Canada’s Cameco is one of the biggest global providers of uranium fuel “with interests in tier-one mining and milling operations that have the licensed capacity to produce more than 30 million pounds (our share) of uranium concentrates annually, backed by more than 469 million pounds (our share) of proven and probable mineral reserves. We are also a leading supplier of uranium refining, conversion and fuel manufacturing services”.
     Cameco’s second quarter financial results were released on Wednesday. Tim Gitzel is the CEO and President of Cameco. He said, “We are invested across the nuclear fuel cycle, and are looking forward to closing the Westinghouse acquisition with our partner Brookfield Renewable Partners, which we expect will occur later this year. We will continue to do what we said we would do, executing on our strategy, and, consistent with our values, we will do so in a manner we believe will make our business sustainable over the long-term.”

     TerraPower has selected four companies to contract for supply services and equipment for their Natrium reactor demonstration project being developed in Kemmerer, Wyoming.
      The Natrium demonstration plant project features a three hundred and forty-five megawatt sodium-cooled fast reactor with an energy storage system based on molten sodium-salt. This storage technology can temporarily boost the system’s output to five hundred megawatts when needed. This enables the plant to follow daily electrical load changes. It also integrates seamlessly with fluctuating renewable resources.
      In November of 2021, Kemmerer was chosen as the preferred site for the demonstration project. The location is near the Naughton coal power plant. The old coal plant is due to be retired in 2025. It was selected after an extensive evaluation process and meetings with community members and leaders.
      TerraPower is a company that is largely funded by Microsoft founder Bill Gates. It has now chosen four suppliers to support the Natrium demonstration project.
      Western Services Corporation (WSC) has been contracted to provide the software platform and engineering services for the Natrium engineering simulator. TerraPower is developing the simulator to simulate normal operation and plant protective functions. WCS will provide services critical to its development.
     James Fisher Technologies (JFT) will design and construct an injection casting furnace system that will be implemented in TerraPower’s Everett laboratory. It will demonstrate the basic functionality of the injection casting process.
     BWXT Canada Limited will design the intermediate heat exchanger for the Natrium demonstration project. This is a critical component which transfers heat from the primary sodium in the primary heat transport system to the intermediate sodium in the intermediate heat transport system.
     Curtiss-Wright Flow Control Service LLC (CWFCS) will develop the reactor protection system (RPS) for the demonstration project. The RPS will perform important safety functions in accordance with regulatory requirements. TerraPower said that this contract follows a phased approach including provisions of a prototype system, as well as, planning and engineering support. This will take place prior to the detailed design, manufacture, testing and delivery of the RPS.
     Tara Neider is the Senior Vice President and Project Director for the Natrium Reactor Demonstration Project. She said, “Throughout the process of bringing the Natrium Reactor and Energy Storage System to market, we have found that working with a diverse supply chain strengthens our ability to deliver a cutting-edge technology. The commercialization of advanced reactors relies on the support of experts from various industries, and we look forward to collaborating with these suppliers to build the Natrium reactor.”
     TerraPower noted the process of awarding contracts for the project was ongoing. It will continue to provide updates as additional contracts are awarded.
     Last December, TerraPower stated that it expected operation of the Natrium demonstration reactor to be delayed by at least two years. The reason for the delay is that there will not be sufficient commercial capacity to manufacture high-assay, low-enriched uranium (HALEU) fuel in time to mee the proposed 2028 in-service date.
     However, last month TerraPower and Centrus Energy Corporation signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to significantly expand their collaboration aimed at establishing commercial scale, U.S. production capabilities for HALEU to supply TerraPower’s novel Natrium reactor and energy storage system.

     U.S. uranium mining company Uranium Energy Corporation (UEC) recently announced its plan to accelerate the steps required for a resumption of operations. This will enable a faster restart at the Christensen Ranch in-situ leaching (ISL) project in Wyoming.
     UEC acquired the Uranium One Americans (U1A) project from Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom in December of 2021. U1A’s assets included production-ready the Christensen Ranch ISL project and associated orebodies. When combined with the Irigaray central processing plant (CPP), this group of assets forms the Willow Creek uranium mine. They have been under care and maintenance since 2018.
     UEC said, “The repatriation of the assets to US ownership has been a transformative acquisition for UEC, positioning the company as the largest, fully permitted, low-cost ISL project resource base of any US-based producer.” Since the UEC acquisition of the U1A assets, “key production infrastructure, including its wellfields and the satellite ion exchange plant, have been maintained, and now upgraded and refurbished to facilitate a fast restart. Uranium recovered from Christensen Ranch will be processed at UEC’s Irigaray CPP.”
     The Irigarauy CPP is the anchor of the UEC’s Wyoming hub-and-spoke project. The plant was originally constructed by Westinghouse and was later expanded by U1A in 2010. The expansion added two resin elution circuits and additional precipitation capacity. The Irigaray CPP is one of the biggest uranium CPPs in the U.S. It is licensed for two and a half million pounds of uranium production per year. There are pending plans to increase the licensed capacity to four million pounds per year.
     The first project that will feed the Irigaray CPO will be the Christensen Ranch project. UEC has been working at Christensen Ranch since the beginning of this year. They are moving out of care and maintenance and advancing towards resuming production. UEC has already conducted a series of operational tests in the mine units of the project.
     UEC also announced the installation of a new wellfield at the Christensen Ranch. The drilling and well installation program for one hundred and eighty recovery and injection wells is planned to start in August of 2023. The company noted that “Although not required for initial startup, these new wellfield modules will be installed and available for ramp up to meet production requirements.”
     Amir Adnani is the UEC President and CEO of UEC. He said, “With demand increasing for uranium supply from stable geopolitical jurisdictions and US national security objectives, we foresee an increasingly urgent need for domestic uranium supply. The fundamental drivers of supply and demand, including pending legislation to ban Russian uranium imports to the United States, are translating into rising uranium prices that have accelerated UEC’s production readiness program. In that regard, we have been working towards restarting production to fulfill the need for domestic uranium.”
     In April of 2022, UEC disclosed mineral resources totaling sixty-nine million pounds of U308 in the first technical filing for its Wyoming hub-and-spoke uranium ISL project. The elements of the project consist of the Irigaray, Christensen Ranch, Moore Ranch, Reno Creek, Ludeman, Allemand-Ross, Barge and the Jab/West Jab project areas. The total measured and indicated resources across all the assets total almost sixty-two million pounds of U308. Total inferred resources are over seven million pounds of U308.