ORNL cleanup

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam expressed concern about federal funding for cleanups at ORNL. He's not convinced ORNL is getting its "fair share," he said. KNS here.

American Centrifuge

USEC and B&W, the Oak Ridge-based partners in manufacturing centrifuges for processing nuclear fuel, still await a federal loan guarantee, but have formed a new company. The KNS reports.

Y-12 applauded by Feds, decried by peace activists

[Updated] Federal inspectors gave the B&W Y-12 management team a rating of excellent in the latest assessment. The Uranium Processing Facility being built for the Babcock & Wilcox and Bechtel team is highlighted as a strategically important element in the organization's transformation to its evolving security mission. The KNS has it. Subsequently, KNS reported activists are criticizing Y-12 plans as a costly bomb plant.

Wamp joins USEC rally

Tennessee gubernatorial candidate and U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp (R-Chattanooga) joined USEC workers rallying in Washington, as part of an effort to get the Department of Energy to reconsider its decision to deny USEC's request for a loan guarantee to support development and production of centrifuges for nuclear-enrichment. The loan decision affects hundreds of jobs in Wamp's district. The KNS reports today. Our earlier post on this dispute. Other VNC Wamp news.

USEC's nuclear 'shock'

Bethesda-based USEC Inc., which has strong ties to Oak Ridge National Laboratory, announced a blow this morning, in the form of DOE denying its application for a $2 billion loan guarantee to support an Ohio centrifuge project that would help generate enriched uranium for nuclear power plants. The company's release is here. USEC earlier laid-out its case for the guarantee, here. The Chillicothe Gazette provides background.