All articles tagged with #department of energy
Three DOE-backed microreactors have reached criticality—Unity by Deployable Energy, plus Antares and Valar Atomics—marking a milestone in demonstrating compact reactors for powering data centers and other high-demand loads; however, experts say criticality is only an early step and scaling, HALEU fuel supply, financing, and NRC licensing remain major hurdles before any commercial deployment.
Three startups in the DOE’s pilot program have turned on new reactors and reached criticality, a milestone meant to jump‑start a new wave of small modular reactors and carbon‑free power. While the speed is aided by regulatory cuts and lab support, experts caution these are test reactors, not commercial products, and licensing, fuel supply, and cost hurdles still loom before any grid deployment—despite Valar Atomics’ criticality demonstrations (even powering an Nvidia chip) and other pilots aiming to be critical soon, including Antares Nuclear and Deployable Energy; Aalo Atomics has yet to hit criticality.
Darío Gil, the DoE’s science under-secretary, is leading a high-profile push into AI and quantum science through the Genesis initiative, which aims to create an overarching AI platform that connects scientific instruments, supercomputers, and data across 17 national labs. The first Genesis funding round drew about 5,000 proposals and $293 million in awards, with the program totaling roughly $520 million so far. The effort coincides with a 2028 target to build a fault-tolerant quantum computer, even as researchers worry that basic-science funding could be squeezed by AI investments. Gil argues the funds will remain spread across disciplines and emphasizes collaboration with industry and academia to harness, safeguard, and guide AI’s future.
The Energy Department announced a $17.5 billion loan package to support the construction of 10 large nuclear reactors, signaling a major federal push to expand nuclear power in the United States, with the Vogtle plant in Georgia shown among the facilities.
The Energy Department will provide about $17.5 billion in loans to five special-purpose vehicles to finance the construction of 10 large AP1000 reactors (two per project, each ~1.1 GW). The loans aim to lower costs and speed completion by up to three years, with significant equity contributions from Westinghouse and partners; long-term power purchase agreements from major tech firms are expected to support the projects, though site selections have not been announced yet.
The White House moves to unwind the EPA’s endangerment finding, rolling back greenhouse-gas regulations and avoiding reliance on a DOE-backed contrarian report; the five researchers behind that report faced heavy criticism and lawsuits, and EPA’s final action signals a regulatory argument rather than a challenge to mainstream climate science.
NASA and the DOE signed an agreement to pursue a lunar nuclear power system that could fuel Artemis-era bases on the Moon by 2030; nuclear fission would provide continuous electricity for years without refueling, supporting deep-space outposts and aligning with a Trump-era push to establish lunar infrastructure, building on decades of space-nuclear research.
The U.S. Department of Energy announced collaborations with 24 organizations to advance the Genesis Mission, leveraging AI to accelerate scientific discovery, enhance national security, and promote energy innovation, in line with President Trump's initiatives to boost American AI leadership.
CoreWeave has joined the Department of Energy's Genesis Mission to support advanced scientific workloads with its AI cloud platform, aiming to accelerate discovery science, enhance national security, and promote U.S. energy innovation through high-performance, reliable AI infrastructure.
AMD has partnered with the US Department of Energy to develop two new supercomputers, Lux and Discovery, at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, with a $1 billion investment aimed at advancing AI and scientific research.
The US Department of Energy criticized wind and solar energy for being 'worthless' without sunlight or wind, prompting Elon Musk to highlight the importance of batteries for energy storage. The debate underscores ongoing tensions over renewable energy policies, with Musk supporting batteries and renewables, while the Trump administration has taken steps to limit renewable projects and promote fossil fuels.
A radioactive wasp nest was discovered at the Savannah River nuclear waste site in South Carolina, containing radiation levels over ten times the legal limit. The nest was safely disposed of, and no contamination was found in the surrounding area, though the origin of the radioactive waste remains unclear. The site, historically involved in nuclear weapons production, is now focused on environmental cleanup and research.
Kohler Co.'s $51.2 million federal award for a factory in Casa Grande, Arizona, was terminated by the Department of Energy along with 23 other awards totaling $3.7 billion, due to concerns over economic viability and return on investment.
The U.S. Department of Energy announced a new supercomputer named 'Doudna' for 2026, powered by Nvidia's Vera Rubin chips and Dell's liquid-cooled servers, to be used by 11,000 researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, advancing scientific discovery across multiple fields and supporting national security efforts.
Rivian has secured a $6.6 billion conditional loan from the U.S. Department of Energy to resume construction of its planned factory in Georgia, which is now expected to begin operations in 2028. The factory, initially announced in 2021, was delayed due to financial constraints, leading Rivian to shift production plans for its R2 SUV to its existing Illinois plant. The Georgia facility is projected to employ 7,500 people by 2030, supported by a $1.5 billion incentives package from the state.