Nearly a hundred advanced nuclear energy projects are getting cash from the federal government, with the bulk going toward nuclear waste research, the Department of Energy announced this week in the midst of budget season.
Most of the $61 million DOE is awarding to advanced nuclear research programs, $58 million, will go to universities, the agency said in a press release Tuesday. These projects will “focus on nuclear energy research, cross-discipline technology development, and nuclear reactor infrastructure to bolster the resiliency and use of America’s largest domestic source of carbon-free energy,” the release said.
Of that $58 million, $50 million will be spread among 69 of the 99 awardees to develop “novel methods” for storing nuclear waste, DOE said. There will also be about a $6 million grant to 24 awardees aimed at improving infrastructure at university test reactors.
Money for these awards will come from DOE nuclear energy programs such as the Nuclear Energy University Program (NEUP), the press release said. NEUP, which the department created in 2009, funds nuclear energy research and development and provides educational services at U.S. colleges and universities.
The department will also manage its awards through the Nuclear Science User Facilities (NSUF) subprogram within the Nuclear Energy Enabling Technologies (NEET) program, the release said. If the fiscal 2022 budget becomes law, NEET will get around $124 million in funding, including $42 million for NSUF.
According to the enacted budget for the 2021 fiscal year, 20% of the department’s budget for nuclear energy research and development should go to NEUP. DOE requested just north of $600 million for R&D for fiscal 2022 between its reactor and fuel cycle development programs.
The Joe Biden administration has said that it views nuclear energy as a key part of its climate agenda. In addition to this $61 million cash infusion for advanced reactor research, DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy would get a roughly $1.8 billion budget if the administration’s spending request is approved. That would include around $20 million for the Nuclear Energy office to start looking into a federal interim storage site for the nation’s spent nuclear fuel.
