[{"_1":2,"_112":-5,"_113":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88,100],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6149635,"mediaKeyId","5511383-66c715e490bea266dbab75dda037bb37","parentId",5511383,"title","BWXT briefs lawmakers on TRISO fuel, Project Pele and Wyoming supply‑chain potential","audioSeconds",302,"startMs",12136000,"endMs",12438000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5511383-66c715e490bea266dbab75dda037bb37&start=12136&end=12438","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5511383-66c715e490bea266dbab75dda037bb37/thumbnail_12136000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6149635/Wyoming/BWXT-briefs-lawmakers-on-TRISO-fuel-Project-Pele-and-Wyoming-supplychain-potential","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6149635-2e594e62129625118a48b957d66c3803/orig.mp4?Expires=1770820003&Signature=Dj0Bm3fNEoBdgqV7b31n08EV-dBKRRGm6AlNcwZhpWt6Oa8IC0ai56Ims3tNRF0t1IJAh6vf96FvKAdumtz~ZQ-Jtc6j1h49V-MAARsLSbyR86g7xRwFwvFyROp2VfCC~niA6PvdYKSFKrtRu18TnDVz5OS4OdhKUScISlQtkyEIHzgVtAw-WrdgaZfYBr3fR~rtxU55zuzuheqU-edxIFAIQ-13t-TRwK3nh6wecEusdl0QYtQUbRC3a3u1JwVoERO-dM2rCfRJYa7s7xHTg~Olti6QWYhoFXh~tGBBBi-IpzPtxT0BUpircV0SC2eFIHZgktXsNnS~FLrJsOdI~w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Wyoming Legislature","date","2025-07-31T05:40:01.627Z","article","Joshua Parker, senior director for Advanced Nuclear Fuels at BWXT, told the committee the company has a 165‑year history in boilers and reactors and has made naval reactors for more than seven decades. He described BWXT’s existing TRISO fuel capability at Lynchburg, Virginia, and its involvement in Project Pele, a Department of Defense microreactor program deploying a high‑temperature gas reactor prototype. \"Project Pele... that reactor just began construction this past two weeks ago,\" Parker said.

Parker explained TRISO fuel architecture — a uranium kernel plated with a porous carbon buffer and multiple outer layers including silicon carbide — and showed a compact prototype used for testing. \"These are surrogate particles that will then be pressed into compacts,\" he said. Parker said BWXT produces naval cores and maintains NRC‑category licensed facilities and that expanding TRISO fuel production would require matching upstream enrichment supplies and downstream reactor customers.

BWXT detailed supplier outreach and early supplier successes in Wyoming: the company hosted supply‑chain days, performed on‑site supplier assessments and identified Wyoming firms that could supply graphite machining and other components. Parker said Wyoming firms already contributed test components to university reactor tests. \"We actually procured parts inside of Wyoming,\" he said, citing HiViz and other vendors that manufactured graphite blocks for reactor testing at MIT.

BWXT said it and the Wyoming Energy Authority have an ongoing cooperation agreement to evaluate the state as a possible location for expanded TRISO fuel production and that further decisions depend on aggregated reactor demand, enrichment feedstock availability and regulatory approvals. Parker said BWXT seeks to aggregate demand — multiple modules or repeat orders — to lower production costs and achieve viable manufacturing economics.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Joint Minerals, Business & Economic Development Committee, July 30, 2025-PM","oneSentenceSummary","BWXT described its TRISO fuel capability, Project Pele microreactor work for the U.S. Department of Defense and early work to assess Wyoming suppliers and research partners for advanced fuel manufacturing.","taxTitle","Minerals, Business & Economic Development, Joint & Standing, Committees, Legislative, Wyoming","taxId",15490,"location","Wyoming","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6149640,"Radiant pitches microreactor factory in Wyoming as residents raise health, property and process concerns",386,7109000,7495000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5511383-66c715e490bea266dbab75dda037bb37&start=7109&end=7495","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5511383-66c715e490bea266dbab75dda037bb37/thumbnail_7109000.jpg","/articles/6149640/Wyoming/Radiant-pitches-microreactor-factory-in-Wyoming-as-residents-raise-health-property-and-process-concerns","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6149640-067371b7aaa2ff9821041a41808fd144/orig.mp4?Expires=1770820003&Signature=GbBG5hpY5L7MS37xPlNwEC~bUfh8ez2tx0VeACPwC1kdfrrT4fqAvTq~KxUBJoUMDXuUthvRVQjJngRkWKfZfqY6JGArb7RJcHKlk30UZ9GFJvNxFpweJVNJAlCBss5ANOgQ-z5Z2G~k~HX4orxqqtHquAYd9XK3U96g6jSnffXLzBdJ-81YTtFQeazB8hQIU67LrPdsmv-G2VdwHI478qAFR533B5FflsAxgeD~y8AiGSUFNC2n2IHHohPmZBAzjvCF-yma5jTQ5QnapkzRnuFPB14gWcEgKUHDDXB-AboTRSSITzmQazd-fE0-Nu8vNJayFzfuRydLYey-lgO~tg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Radiant representatives told the Minerals, Business & Economic Development Committee they plan to mass‑produce small transportable microreactors and said the company has been selected for an upcoming test at Idaho National Laboratory. \"Radiant is proud to be the first company to mass produce microreactors,\" Jessie Dafoe, Radiant, told the committee. Rita Baranwald, Radiant's chief nuclear officer, said Radiant's Kaleidos design will be demonstrated at INL and that the company expects to attract suppliers and thousands of jobs to the region. \"We're gonna go in on 04/01/2026,\" she said about a planned test.

Radiant and its managers answered questions about manufacturing, local suppliers and timelines. \"We are a manufacturing center, and so we will have welders on‑site. We will have machinists on‑site,\" said Makai Cartman, senior operations manager. Company executives said not every component requires nuclear qualification and that some Wyoming suppliers already meet needed capabilities. Radiant described fuel as TrISO particles pressed into compacts and confirmed that used fuel from a microreactor would be removed and placed into transport/storage casks when the unit is refueled. \"It's a 100% (refuel) — this reactor concept, it will be 100%,\" Baranwald said.

Multiple committee members and dozens of public speakers urged a slower, more transparent process. Bar Nunn residents and local officials said notice and public outreach had been limited before county and local endorsements. Speakers raised questions about emergency response, property values, evacuation routes and the length of public notice. \"We did not move here to expose kids to this kind of a danger,\" a Bar Nunn resident said during public comment, citing proximity of the proposed site to housing and schools. Northern Arapaho and other tribal speakers urged lawmakers to reject storage proposals that could expose tribal lands and water to long‑term contamination and cited historic contamination at U.S. uranium sites.

Radiant executives said they would continue local engagement and invited site visits to DOE facilities. The company said full NRC licensing and DOE/DOE‑partner testing are prerequisites for any commercial deployment. The committee tabled the legislative draft that pertains to storage and directed staff to pursue more public meetings and additional technical reports before advancing statutory changes.","Radiant representatives described plans to mass‑produce transportable microreactors in Wyoming and to refuel units there; company leaders said they will work with regulators while many local residents and tribal speakers urged slower public engagement, stronger safeguards and more information on transport and long‑term waste handling.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6149645,"Wyoming interim committee reviews draft bill to permit storage tied to advanced reactor manufacturers; public sharply divided",676,2334000,3010000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5511383-66c715e490bea266dbab75dda037bb37&start=2334&end=3010","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5511383-66c715e490bea266dbab75dda037bb37/thumbnail_2334000.jpg","/articles/6149645/Wyoming/Wyoming-interim-committee-reviews-draft-bill-to-permit-storage-tied-to-advanced-reactor-manufacturers-public-sharply-divided","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6149645-2c650a5f75f7c8e3113a456f56b97f93/orig.mp4?Expires=1770820003&Signature=UD2MwnUZl276exNocj58uC4KfUF7zuH4tFvx6sEcggRI2qL4QhRdmTOcqXxe2qjvWBJEdAjBeJ7vlBir7okyVhMI4prxb35qiNFPYUNpOnBKLjQ6yCpZYS0P2Ho14ijmiDaICqSrWs4xOK2Vqfg7M~3HZ~H1tqA4gPZhhn22J~tYxbRCCCZUnlso7rtm8ian0ZWfCPLNxb8PgF~cmBVfoD38xhxdllFU0h9SPeefQuiZ-gr7LIl6xb2jJNUejrV9w9XY31Ok4mmsjnNjQUycTKx3vj9ilGK8i5jH-758UHQ6Tr-xkXWgIDtW9yemrnmV1d31rh5lSNUEpEhmWv0c7Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Committee staff presented draft 26LSO73 (version 0.6), a legislative draft that would extend a statutory path for an \"installation\"—defined in the draft as an on‑site storage facility operated by an advanced nuclear reactor manufacturer—to receive conditional, legislative preapproval in Wyoming subject to NRC licensing and state review requirements. \"This is a bill that the committee requested in May,\" staff said, describing additions to Wyoming Statutes, including references to 35‑11‑1501 et seq. and Industrial Siting Act provisions.

Staff explained the draft would: add an \"advanced nuclear reactor manufacturer\" definition (a person physically located in Wyoming that manufactures and deploys advanced reactors from a Wyoming location); subject installations to the Industrial Siting Act only where the Act does not conflict with NRC requirements; require the operator to send DEQ copies of NRC reports; require DEQ to review financial assurance, decommissioning and reclamation plans and, if necessary, recover costs incurred in preparing those reviews; and preserve ownership of on‑site spent nuclear fuel with the manufacturer until federal title transfer occurs.

Director Todd Parfitt of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality outlined the statutory history the staff had summarized and described the notice and public‑input opportunities the Industrial Siting Act currently provides: pre‑application meetings with affected local governments, a 30‑day notice before submitting an industrial siting application, party status for affected local governments and nonprofit organizations, and opportunities for limited appearances at hearings. \"If [the legislature] wants additional public input opportunities, there's always the opportunity to look at 15‑06 and incorporate them,\" Parfitt said.

Representative Lloyd Larson, the bill sponsor, said the draft attempts to balance state statutory review with NRC licensing and to give the public more local input through the Industrial Siting Act. \"We felt that this really helped us accomplish that,\" Larson said, noting the draft would bar applicants from seeking the 35‑12‑107 fast waiver so installations must go through the longer 35‑12‑109 industrial siting review.

Committee members and the public pressed for additional safeguards and clarifications. Concerns raised during the meeting and public comment included: whether the bill would permit out‑of‑state or international spent fuel to be brought into Wyoming (staff and some witnesses said the draft focuses on fuel produced by reactors manufactured and refueled at Wyoming installations and that the draft was not intended to authorize import of unrelated legacy waste), whether DEQ should be expressly required to hold funds or bonds under state control rather than rely on federal financial assurance instruments, the sequence and timing of public engagement (some speakers urged public outreach before any statutory preapproval), transportation and emergency‑response planning, and the limits of state versus federal authority.

At the end of the meeting the committee took interim procedural actions: it voted to sponsor two unrelated bills (26LSO74 and 26LSO153), failed to sponsor three other drafts, and tabled 26LSO73 for further work. Staff was asked to draft two additional bills requested by the committee (amendments to state incentives related to CO2‑EOR and a severance tax exemption modeled on earlier law). \"We've got five months before the next session,\" one legislator said. \"Use the interim to get more information, to hold public meetings and to refine the draft.\"","The Minerals, Business & Economic Development Committee reviewed draft 26LSO73, a bill that would preapprove and regulate storage facilities tied to advanced reactor manufacturers. Staff explained proposed amendments; legislators, agency heads and residents pressed for more public engagement, financial assurances and clarity on scope.",{"_33":101,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":102,"_41":103,"_43":104,"_45":105,"_47":106,"_49":107,"_51":108,"_53":109,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":110,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":111,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6149650,"DOE official outlines reprocessing, consolidated storage and repository timelines",1371,8000,1379000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5511383-66c715e490bea266dbab75dda037bb37&start=8&end=1379","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5511383-66c715e490bea266dbab75dda037bb37/thumbnail_8000.jpg","/articles/6149650/Wyoming/DOE-official-outlines-reprocessing-consolidated-storage-and-repository-timelines","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6149650-417ad468d6640fb28874d53288f20044/orig.mp4?Expires=1770820003&Signature=NSd5djonvSsanGLEqVWLbuyIvKsCiyVeycuMLDCCDvbCxeCwjABfsmh~wlT3GMr8XeEvfI6132LP~rhgcqi~If611gSTaXXhoT5vip77NbmYm0id0hOs8cEAWbmwWBlZXd8pvg~Cl-2yP5JLAJjYC9FyvdnM~aB9fp-zCh3KXtH6L7o9bFZhmE3pIiCUGp~PveKRU9YV8k5hn2rUnPRJzzT7bqbtOcovIxCVT2~GdJZqqRqjlMcK~V4sMvnKZr73sp4k73Vm8PO9iImQt4F~3LMPAU5HLQLdX-otkhqBoL~crn8BF11vTBJqLVf9aQsdHnPRr6x5dnYJ4bgwnN2-Vw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Paul Murray, a Department of Energy official who identified himself as an engineer at DOE, told the Wyoming Legislature’s Minerals, Business and Economic Development Committee that the federal government distinguishes between the nuclear waste fund and the judgment fund and is preparing a 240‑day plan on spent nuclear fuel policy. \"The nuclear waste fund is the money that the utilities collected from their customers and paid to DOE,\" he said. \"The judgment fund is the money that is used by the federal government to pay people that sue the federal government.\"

Murray told the committee DOE is authorized by Congress to design one‑or‑more consolidated storage facilities sized initially for about 15,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel each, but that current law — the Nuclear Waste Policy Act — would need amendment for siting and construction. \"These facilities take up about 2 square miles. They're initially sized to take 15,000 tons of spent nuclear fuel,\" he said.

Murray described reprocessing as the first step in a potential fuel‑cycle option and walked the committee through a pilot reprocessing concept sized at roughly 800 tons. He said a pilot plant would require a bank of used fuel, peak construction employment near 45,000 jobs and about 5,000 direct operating jobs for the plant, plus secondary jobs, based on adapted French plans. \"I'm not advocating for reprocessing,\" Murray added. \"But it is the first step in any future reprocessing plant.\"

On international practice, Murray said France currently reprocesses and the United Kingdom and others have had or are building reprocessing capacity. He told the committee France reports a roughly 30% reduction in repository volume after reprocessing and said DOE is engaging foreign programs to understand true cost and benefit. \"France tells me that it actually reduces the size of the final repository. They say it reduces the repository by about 30%.\"

On timing and program scale, Murray said a full U.S. repository program would be multigenerational. He cited historical numbers for Yucca Mountain and said, because of scope and shipping, repository costs run into the hundreds of billions and a repository program could span more than a century from the start of work to closure. \"We're talking hundreds of billions of dollars for this program spanning a 200 year time frame,\" he said.

Committee members asked whether fuel could be sent abroad for reprocessing (Murray: \"Potentially\" but shipping is expensive), whether reprocessing could be resumed in the U.S. (DOE is studying options and private industry is exploring potential plants) and whether private reprocessors could locate adjacent to DOE consolidated storage. Murray said DOE is considering whether reprocessing would be a DOE project or private industry service.

Murray also told the committee DOE plans to engage states and communities; he repeatedly said DOE is not trying to site facilities without collaboration and that a state choosing to host any long‑term site should have a negotiated arrangement rather than a one‑sided federal decision. \"We can't have another Yucca Mountain experience again. We've got to have a collaborative based approach to site in it,\" he said.","A Department of Energy official described options for consolidated storage, pilot reprocessing and a decades-long timetable for a deep geologic repository while answering questions from Wyoming legislators.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

BWXT briefs lawmakers on TRISO fuel, Project Pele and Wyoming supply‑chain potential

Radiant pitches microreactor factory in Wyoming as residents raise health, property and process concerns

Wyoming interim committee reviews draft bill to permit storage tied to advanced reactor manufacturers; public sharply divided

DOE official outlines reprocessing, consolidated storage and repository timelines