GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy has officially started the regulatory licensing process for its BWRX-300 reactor design. On 30 December, the company submitted the first licensing topical report for the small modular reactor to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The company expects such reports to serve as a foundation for the development of a Preliminary Safety Analysis Report that could potentially be submitted to the NRC by a utility customer.

The US Department of Energy has announced a plan to provide USD10 million over three years to advance particle accelerator technology for medical, security, energy, and industrial applications, with a focus on the development of novel "compact" accelerator technologies for cancer treatment and other uses.

Dismantlement of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station is to begin in February, Southern California Edison has announced. This follows the receipt in October of the final permit required for the decommissioning and dismantlement of the plant which closed in 2013.
 

A facility at the US Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory site in Tennessee is being prepared to process an inventory of legacy high-dose uranium-233 from which materials will be extracted for medical research.

Environmental advocate Michael Shellenberger has called for the US administration to support the nation's nuclear energy industry in what he calls a Green Nuclear Deal. Speaking to the US House of Representatives Committee on Science, Space, and Technology last week, Shellenberger said people need not be passive victims of climate change and there is much that could be done to reduce the impacts of "climate-driven extremes".

GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy and TerraPower are to collaborate on pursuing a public private partnership to design and construct the Versatile Test Reactor for the US Department of Energy. Utility Energy Northwest will support the joint GEH-TerraPower effort, with other parties said to be interested in joining.

The US Department of Energy's Waste Isolation Pilot Plant has received its first large-box cask of transuranic waste since the facility's temporary closure in 2014. Re-entry into service of the TRUPACT-III cask will accelerate the pace of clean-up at DOE sites while reducing worker safety risks.

Orano TN has completed the first transfer and storage of used fuel canisters with a higher than usual heat load using its Extended Optimised Storage dry storage system. The use of EOS, which is licensed by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission for heat loads of up to 50 kW per canister, means used fuel can be transferred to secure dry storage after a shorter period of time.

Global Nuclear Fuel accident-tolerant fuel assemblies have been loaded into a US reactor for the first time. Lead test assemblies using the company's ARMOR-coated zirconium cladding and IronClad accident-tolerant fuel solutions have been installed at Exelon's Clinton boiling water reactor power plant in Illinois.

The US Department of Energy has selected Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, New York, as the site for a new research facility that it says will be a game-changing resource for the international nuclear physics community. The Electron Ion Collider will be designed and constructed over 10 years and cost about USD1.6-2.6 billion.

Canada and the USA have finalised an agreement to collaborate on improving the security of supply chains and ensure the future competitiveness of their critical minerals industries. The announcement follows a June 2019 commitment by the countries' leaders.

A spike in New Jersey's carbon pollution following the closure of the Oyster Creek nuclear power plant in 2018 has exacerbated the challenge of addressing climate change, Carol M Browner wrote in an OpEd published on 3 January by NJ Spotlight. To achieve our climate goals, we must preserve existing nuclear plants, she said.