Trump admin pushes nuclear startups to use plutonium in reactors
▼ Summary
– The U.S. Department of Energy selected five nuclear startups for negotiations to receive some of the 34 tons of plutonium identified for disposal, potentially for use in new reactors.
– The plutonium originated from Cold War nuclear weapons stockpiles, which the government now stores in high-security facilities due to dismantlement.
– The selected startups include Oklo, Standard Nuclear, Shine Technologies, Flibe Energy, and Exodys Energy, each developing reactors that can use plutonium as fuel.
– Plutonium has a 24,000-year half-life, making permanent disposal impossible, and some startups plan to use it in mixed oxide fuel (MOX), though a prior U.S. MOX project was canceled.
– Security concerns are significant because the plutonium came from nuclear weapons, and the startups must now negotiate with the government on security and transportation.
For decades, the United States has grappled with a plutonium surplus. Approximately 100 tons of the material were produced during the Cold War to arm the nation’s most powerful nuclear warheads. As the U.S. dismantled its atomic stockpile, the government was left storing this radioactive legacy in heavily guarded, high-security facilities.
Now, the Trump administration is turning to the private sector for a solution. The Department of Energy announced Tuesday that it has selected five nuclear startups to begin negotiations for receiving a portion of this plutonium. The goal is to repurpose the material as fuel for a new wave of advanced reactors. The agency had previously earmarked 34 tons of plutonium for disposal.
The chosen companies are Oklo, Standard Nuclear, Shine Technologies, Flibe Energy, and Exodys Energy. Energy Secretary Chris Wright previously served on Oklo’s board but resigned upon joining the administration, stating he has divested his shares. Sam Altman, a former board chair at Oklo following its merger with his acquisition company AltC, stepped down from that role last year.
While plutonium occurs naturally in trace amounts, it is more commonly a byproduct of bombarding non-fissile uranium with neutrons. The resulting isotope has a staggering half-life of 24,000 years, making passive storage an untenable long-term strategy.
Oklo is developing a reactor capable of running on both traditional uranium fuel and plutonium. The company plans to use the plutonium to power its initial reactors. Exodys Energy is working on a reactor that can incorporate plutonium as part of mixed oxide fuel (MOX), a blend of uranium and plutonium. Flibe Energy is designing a reactor that would run on plutonium and other fission byproducts.
MOX fuel is currently produced in France. The United States had its own plans to manufacture it in South Carolina, but the first Trump administration scrapped the project after it exceeded budgets and timelines. One of Oklo’s partners, the U. K.-based firm Newcleo, has announced plans to build its own MOX fuel fabrication facility nearby.
Not everyone is enthusiastic about the initiative. Given that the plutonium originated from nuclear weapons, security concerns are paramount. “Countries have tried this before, and they concluded that, as nice as it would be to use that plutonium as fuel, it’s really just a liability and we need to dispose of it permanently,” Scott Roecker, a vice president at the Nuclear Threat Initiative, told the New York Times.
For the startups, the immediate next step is entering advanced negotiations with the government regarding security protocols and the logistics of transporting the plutonium.
(Source: TechCrunch)