Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Advanced Nuclear Reactors topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
DOE and Idaho National Laboratory officials celebrate advanced reactors reaching criticality and set wider goals
Summary
Idaho National Laboratory Director John Wagner and Energy Department officials celebrated recent advanced-reactor criticalities and said they expect three reactors to have achieved criticality by July 4, citing accelerated program timelines and a recent $17.5 billion loan commitment to build large reactors.
John Wagner, director of the Idaho National Laboratory, and Department of Energy officials celebrated recent advances in U.S. advanced-reactor development and outlined near-term and long-term goals at a public event.
"Antares Mark 0 achieved criticality at the laboratory on June 4," Wagner said, calling it "the first novel reactor to go critical at our laboratory in more than 50 years." He said Valor Atomics achieved criticality in Utah two weeks later and described reactor development as a "cascade" of progress that the laboratory expects to continue. Wagner urged continued partnership among national labs, developers and federal staff, and said the next target is "400 gigawatts of nuclear capacity by 2050."
A Department of Energy official addressed the audience earlier and framed the administration's energy agenda as focused on rapid deployment. Citing program actions taken since the goal was set, the speaker said, "We look to be on track to have three next-generation nuclear reactors running by July 4." The official also referenced recent federal actions clearing regulatory pathways and supporting fuel commitments.
The DOE official said there had been a recent financing announcement: "Two days ago, we had an announcement for a large 17 and a half billion dollar loan commitment to build 10 large scale 1.1 gigawatt reactors," presented as a recent development to accelerate larger commercial scale deployment.
Undersecretary Kyle Hossbite, introduced at the event, praised lab staff, reactor developers and national-lab partnerships for accelerating schedules and supporting innovation. Event remarks repeatedly credited faster program decisions, HALEU commitments and regulatory work at the Office of Nuclear Energy with enabling the rapid milestones Wagner described.
Speakers named several reactor developers participating in the effort, including Radiant, Oklo, Standard Nuclear and companies identified in the transcript as Antares/Valor and "Aloe Atomics." Wagner thanked site and DOE staff, contractors and operators for meeting compressed schedules and said the present achievements were meant to be the foundation for a larger industrial expansion.
The event foregrounded both the recent technical milestones—specific reactors reaching criticality—and policy and financing signals designed to sustain deployment. Officials and the INL director urged continued collaboration among federal agencies, national labs and private developers as the program moves from demonstration to larger-scale construction and commercialization.
