The US will reportedly provide nuclear waste to energy companies so they can convert it into fuel for advanced reactors, thereby breaking Russia's dominance of the uranium supply chain.
The US Department of Energy released an application on Tuesday (October 21st) that allows nuclear power companies to obtain up to 19 metric tons of weapons-grade plutonium from nuclear warheads left over from the Cold War.
Civilian nuclear power plants can use both uranium and plutonium as nuclear fuel, but their use and scenarios differ.
In the document, viewed by industry insiders, the US Department of Energy stated that selected companies to receive the plutonium will be able to expedite the approval process for a Nuclear Regulatory Commission license—a prerequisite for operating nuclear facilities in the United States.
At least two companies—Oklo, backed by OpenAI CEO Altman, and Newcleo, a French developer of innovative reactors—are expected to apply for access to the government's plutonium stockpile.
This move is the latest by the Trump administration to boost the nuclear industry at a time when US electricity demand is growing for the first time in decades. Industry forecasts predict that the surge in data centers used to train and run AI models will cause electricity demand to more than double by 2035.
Although nuclear power plants in Michigan and Pennsylvania are set to restart operations within the next two years and the US has invested billions of dollars in the development of small modular reactors, a nuclear fuel bottleneck remains a major constraint on the industry's growth.
Small modular reactors (SMRs), which can provide up to 300 megawatts of power, typically require highly enriched low-enriched uranium (HALEU), the production of which is currently dominated by Russia. In 2024, the former Biden administration announced a ban on US imports of uranium products from Russia. The US produces less than one ton of uranium annually.
In May, Trump issued four executive orders aimed at boosting the nuclear industry, two of which directed the Department of Energy to identify and provide surplus nuclear fuel to reactor developers.
Hazards cannot be ignored
However, many industry experts remain concerned about the commercial use of plutonium and the risk of it falling into the wrong hands.
Edwin Lyman, a physicist at the Union of Concerned Scientists, said, "Unless there is a commitment to ensure nuclear weapons-grade security, the risk of theft will increase significantly."
"If the relevant parties have mature management capabilities and the federal government can set reasonable standards, this issue would not be a cause for undue concern, but in reality, this seems difficult to achieve."
According to the US Department of Energy, groups applying for access to plutonium stockpiles must now detail their recycling plans, methods for manufacturing radioactive fuel, and safety procedures.
As a potential applicant, France's Newcleo company reached a joint agreement with Oklo last week, agreeing to invest up to $2 billion in the United States to develop advanced fuel manufacturing and production infrastructure.
Newcleo founder and CEO Stefano Buono said they would be "very happy" to use the plutonium resource. "The United States has 92,000 tons of spent fuel, which could provide a century of energy independence."
However, a previous attempt by the United States to use plutonium for civilian purposes in 2018 was not successful and was ultimately canceled due to the rising costs of converting plutonium into nuclear fuel. Because Congress controls nuclear waste, Trump's legal authority to release plutonium is currently unclear.
