By Henry Sokolski Last month, Energy Secretary Chris Wright asked Congress to approve a US-Saudi civilian nuclear cooperative agreement. The clock is ticking. Ninety days hence, the United States could be exporting reactors to the Kingdom unless Congress objects to the deal. Before Congress approves such exports, though, it should examine why so few Russians … More Guest commentary: Could US nuclear reactors survive military hits in Saudi Arabia?

By Kennedy Maize President Trump, reaching back to his first go-round, has issued another possible ban on foreign-made equipment crucial to the bulk power system, to be administered by the Department of Energy. A likely outcome is to push up the costs of electric power, passed on to consumers. Late last month (Aug. 26), Trump … More Trump potentially bans broad swath of foreign electrical gear

By Kennedy Maize One of the largest proposed data center developments in the U.S. — Project Jupiter, named after the largest planet in the solar system — is causing some turmoil in New Mexico, including a ruling by the state’s high court halting review of an air quality permit for the project in Doña Ana … More Project Jupiter major data center roils New Mexico

By Kennedy Maize Is the Trump administration trying to hide from the public the details of its groundbreaking and controversial July 22 proposed U.S.-Saudi Arabia nuclear power cooperative deal?  The administration has now sent a package to Congress for ratification, as required by law. Unlike the case with past similar agreements, the administration has so … More Proposed U.S.-Saudi nuke deal draws attention, contention

By Kennedy Maize Nevada has sued the Trump administration’s Department of the Interior in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada over the agency’s new Colorado River water allocation regime.  The state, the Colorado River Commission of Nevada, and the Southern Nevada Water Authority (“SNWA”) sued Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and the leadership … More Nevada challenges DOI Colorado River plan

By Kennedy Maize Wildfires, always a threat, particularly in the arid western U.S. have been particularly prominent of late. The region has been locked in a drought and the threat of the coming El Niño could make things worse. In Texas, the Austin American Statesman this week reported, “Dry weather and extreme heat over the … More Electric companies and wildfires: who pays?

By Kennedy Maize For 80 years, the U.S. government and its industrial and utility partners have failed to, first, understand the problem of the noxious and dangerous waste produced by the pursuit of nuclear power for war and peace and, second, to successfully respond. HANFORD It begins, as does much of the story of nuclear … More Failure: a short history of U.S. high-level nuclear waste mismanagement

By Kennedy Maize Washington’s latest attempt to deal with the nation’s high-level nuclear waste– mostly used nuclear fuel–kicking the canisters down multiple roads, is already generating political backlash. It’s likely to get worse for the grandiose, hasty, and convoluted Trump administration plan. DOE has indicated implementing may require Congress to pass new legislation and appropriate … More DOE unveils a new, controversial spent nuclear fuel disposal plan

By Kennedy Maize After more than a decade of wrangling, a $340 million plan to resolve water quality issues at Constellation Energy’s century-old Conowingo hydroelectric dam may be headed to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for a new license. But it’s not a sure thing. At an Aug. 13 Ocean City meeting of the Maryland … More Long running Maryland dam dispute resolution near?

By Kennedy Maize What’s the key to fusion energy making a significant contribution to powering the world? According to a new paper from a Massachusetts Institute of Technology team, the answer is “Q.” Writing in the Journal of Fusion Energy, the MIT researchers stress that the dominant thrust for fusion power in the past 75 … More MIT on fusion: It’s about the “Q” conundrum