U.S. Revival 💥

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This is what we got for you this week:

• History in the making: First-Ever U.S. Nuclear Plant Revival💥

• Urenco Cranks Up the Nuclear Volume 🔊

• France's Nuclear to Bid Adieu to Rosatom👋

• Rosatom to Host Nuclear Power Pool Party🎉

• China amps up nuclear ambitions with $17 billion boost 🤑

History in the making: First-Ever U.S. Nuclear Plant Revival💥

The US Department of Energy is promising a whopping $1.52 billion to wake up the Palisades nuclear plant from its beauty sleep. This ambitious plan is setting the stage for Palisades, which was decommissioned in 2022, to become the first-ever US plant restart in history. With Holtec moving to get the necessary nods from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the project aims to extend the plant's life till 2051 and to pop some small modular reactors on the site, enhancing the site's clean energy output.

Urenco Cranks Up the Nuclear Volume🔊

As nuclear energy gains traction, the uranium enrichment heavyweight Urenco is positioning itself to meet the increasing demand from customers with a significant expansion at its Almelo facility in the Netherlands. Aiming for a 15% increase in capacity (750 tonnes of SWU per year), this expansion is just one of Urenco's ambitious moves, including a facelift for its New Mexico facility and a tech upgrade in Germany, all in all, aiming to produce a staggering 1.6 million SWU across its operations. With shovels already in the ground, the first new centrifuge cascades at Almelo are scheduled to come online 2027.

France's Nuclear to Bid Adieu to Rosatom👋

With Europe and the US itching to ditch their Russian dependency, the nuclear world is looking for alternatives to Rosatom Corp.'s tight grip on atomic fuel supplies. The French state-owned power utility EDF has revealed plans, in collaboration with Orano and Westinghouse, to build a nuclear facility in Western Europe by 2030. This facility would handle the conversion of reprocessed uranium, a task currently monopolized by a Rosatom facility in Siberia. This move is part of a broader strategy to give France more control over its nuclear fuel cycle, especially since a significant portion of its reactors rely on fuel processed under a pre-war contract with Rosatom.

Rosatom to Host Nuclear Power Pool Party🎉

Speaking of Rosatom, the company and the local government of Primorsky Krai have announced an agreement to join forces and pepper their coastline with floating nuclear reactors. With plans for four sea-based reactors and two land reactors, they aim to quench the region's energy thirst and spur growth by generating 1.35GW of carbon-free electricity. Having operated one floating nuclear plant since 2019, this agreement shows that Rosatom isn't just dipping its toes in the water but is planning a full-on cannonball into the pool of floating, carbon-free power.

Nuclear Nuggets:

China amps up nuclear ambitions with $17 billion boost - up 52% from last year.

Japan's Giant Reactor Gears Up for a 90s Comeback as Tepco applies for fuel load approval for Kashiwazaki Kariwa.

US Kickstarts Nuclear Energy Workshops to advance US-led civil nuclear energy deployment in Europe and Eurasia.

Meme of the week: