National Nuclear Security Administration News

U.S. research is advancing on the potential to change fuel for nuclear reactors on Navy submarines and aircraft carriers from bomb-grade uranium to a safer option, documents showed Wednesday, even as the program's funding is at risk in Congress.In order to lower proliferation risks of keeping stockpiles of highly-enriched uranium, the U.S. government has been exploring since 2018 how to use low-enriched fuel that cannot be used as fissile material in weapons.The U.S. research…

Maine Maritime Academy’s Board of Trustees announced that Jerald S. “Jerry” Paul has been named as the college’s 15th President. Paul, current President of Capitol Access and a 1989 graduate of the institution, will take office this spring.Paul will succeed President William J. Brennan, who steps down from the position at the end of April following 12 years of transformative leadership at MMA. “I am gratified that the Board has selected such a fine individual to lead this wonderful college when I step down next spring,” says President Brennan.

Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR) announced today that its Department of the Navy contract with Fluor Marine Propulsion, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fluor, was extended through fiscal year 2022. The contract is part of a joint program, Naval Reactors, that is overseen by the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration and the Department of the Navy. The contract includes Naval Nuclear Propulsion work at the Navy Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) sites in New York, Pennsylvania and Idaho.

Huntington Ingalls Industries, the U.S. largest military shipbuilding company, said Tuesday that Kimberly Lebak of its Technical Solutions division has been named president and general manager of HII Nuclear-led joint venture Newport News Nuclear BWXT-Los Alamos (N3B).As president and general manager of N3B, Lebak is responsible for managing the 10-year, $1.4 billion Los Alamos legacy cleanup contract for the U.S. Department of Energy Environmental Management’s Los Alamos Field Office."Kim is well known from her numerous senior executive contributions in government…

Michael Lempke has been appointed vice president of energy programs for Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Newport News Shipbuilding division, succeeding Pete Diakun, who will retire at the end of the year after 31 years of service. Lempke, who will lead the shipyard’s energy programs strategy once he transitions into the new role, has more than two decades of experience in executive acquisition and operations for both government and industry. Most recently, he served as vice president of integrated strategic decision support for Systems, Planning and Analysis, Inc., in Alexandria.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security recognizes Westports for its security measures in the loading US-bound containerized maritime cargo. After the 9/11 attacks the United States instituted various initiatives to increase the layers of security, improve monitoring at points of entry, and strengthen information sharing both internally and globally, and the US Dept of Homeland Security is empowered to introduce measures designed to protect Americans from the threat of a terrorist attack. Towards this end, the department has not only tightened up security procedures at the home front, working in collaboration with the U.S.National Nuclear…

Southampton Container Terminals, United Kingdom, Port Qasim, Pakistan (both managed by DP World) and Puerto Cortez, Honduras will become the first seaports to implement the Secure Freight Initiative (SFI) beginning October 12 by scanning all maritime containers destined for the U.S. for nuclear or other radiological materials. These ports fulfill the requirements set out in the Security and Accountability For Every (SAFE) Port Act of 2006, which establishes a program that couples Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII) and radiation detection technology. Data from these systems is then provided to U.S. officials at U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center for analysis.

The United States has signed an agreement with Panama to prevent smuggling of nuclear and other radioactive materials. The Declaration of Principles was signed Friday, the National Nuclear Security Administration of the U.S. Department of Energy said in a statement. Homeland Security cosigned the declaration, which deals with carrying out the 's Megaports Initiative and CBP's Container Security Initiative. Both programs have as their goal preventing nuclear material being secretly transported through U.S. ports. The initiative is currently operational in six countries, and at various stages of implementation and negotiations with approximately 30 other countries around the world.

According to reports, U.S. Ambassador to The Bahamas John Rood continues to push for The Bahamas to sign onto the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), but according to the country’s foreign minister, The Bahamas – the world’s third largest ship registry – remains cautious. The PSI would give the US the right to search any of thousands of Bahamas-flagged ship anywhere in the world under the pretext of searching for nuclear material or weapons of mass destruction. After applauding the conclusion of the Megaports Initiative (MPI) and the Container Security Initiative (CSI) as major accomplishments in US-Bahamas relations, Mr. Rood pointed out that The Bahamas has yet to sign on to PSI.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) of the Department of Energy said that they have launched the first phase of the Secure Freight Initiative. This will involve the deployment of a combination of existing technology and proven nuclear detection devices to six foreign ports: Port Qasim (Pakistan); Puerto Cortes (Honduras); Southampton (United Kingdom); Port Salalah (Oman); Port of Singapore (Singapore); Gamman Terminal at Port Busan (South Korea). The devices, when installed, will be used to screen shipping containers bound for the United States. Source: HK Law

help thwart smuggling of nuclear and other radioactive material. was co-signed by U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). stop nuclear material from being smuggled to U.S. ports. Oman and the government of Honduras. nuclear and other radioactive materials by smugglers and terrorists. Similar partnerships exist with the Netherlands, Greece and other nations. support prosecution efforts. multidisciplinary teams of U.S. to establish security criteria to identify high-risk containers. States.