Nuclear Fuel Gets 1.5% Power Boost: Feds Review Tiny Tweak
Published Date: 7/15/2025
Notice
Summary
Framatome wants to upgrade its fuel plant in Richland, Washington, to handle uranium with a bit more power—boosting from 5% to just under 6.5% uranium-235. This change needs a license update from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and anyone interested must follow special rules to access sensitive info. The process started early 2025, and this upgrade could impact how nuclear fuel is made, but no big money changes were mentioned yet.
Analyzed Economic Effects
1 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 1 costs, 0 mixed.
Higher Enrichment Request and Restricted File Access
Framatome applied on January 20, 2025 (accepted May 2, 2025) to amend its SNM license to let its Richland, Washington fuel plant increase uranium enrichment from 5.0 weight percent U-235 to less than 6.5 weight percent U-235. Because the request contains Sensitive Unclassified Non-Safeguards Information (SUNSI) and Safeguards Information (SGI), an NRC order requires special procedures to get access to that sensitive material for anyone who files a hearing request or a petition for leave to intervene.
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