Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm and U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) tour Idaho National Laboratory’s National Reactor Innovation Center on Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022, to learn how the lab is advancing nuclear energy to work toward carbon-free energy production.
Biden administration announces $150M in funding for Idaho National Laboratory
Investments from President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act will support and advance next-generation nuclear fuels and reactor technologies critical to achieving America’s climate goals
Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm and U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) tour Idaho National Laboratory’s National Reactor Innovation Center on Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022, to learn how the lab is advancing nuclear energy to work toward carbon-free energy production.
The Biden administration on Tuesday announced $150 million in funding for infrastructure improvements at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory to enhance nuclear energy research and development.
The Department of Energy announced in a news release that the funding, provided by the Inflation Reduction Act, will support nearly a dozen projects at INL’s Advanced Test Reactor and Materials Fuels Complex. Both facilities have been operational for more than 50 years and serve “an instrumental role in advancing nuclear technologies for federal agencies, industry, and international partnerships,” the release said.
Nuclear energy generates nearly a fifth of America’s electricity and accounts for half of all domestic clean energy generation, “making it a critical tool to reaching President Biden’s goal of 100% clean electricity by 2035,” the release said.
U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm toured INL’s facilities on Aug. 3.
“More than 300 commercial reactors operating around the world today can trace their roots back to Idaho National Laboratory, and these infrastructure investments allow America to continue leading the world in groundbreaking nuclear energy research and development,” Granholm said in Tuesday’s release.
She said the Inflation Reduction Act funding will allow the Department of Energy to take “critical steps to strengthen domestic nuclear development and deployment — helping ensure the United States is on track to reach a clean energy future.”
The funding will speed up the replacement of aging plant infrastructure systems at the Advanced Test Reactor and Materials Fuels Complex to ensure both remain operational in supporting several initiatives related to nuclear energy research and development, the release said.
The Advanced Test Reactor, for example, conducts research for the U.S. Navy’s nuclear propulsion program and provides fuels and materials testing for industry. The Materials Fuels Complex contributes significantly to reactor fuels research and is working to produce small quantities of high-assay low-enriched uranium fuel to support future reactor demonstrations, the release said.
Infrastructure upgrades at both facilities are expected to be completed within the next four to five years and will include improvements to water and electrical distribution systems, process control systems, and roof replacements to improve research facility reliability and operability.
The Inflation Reduction Act includes multiple tax incentives and investments to strengthen the nation’s nuclear energy sector and cut U.S. emissions by 40% before the end of the decade, the release said. The legislation appropriated more than $35 billion for new and existing programs at the Department of Energy and included $150 million for the Office of Nuclear Energy to improve its research R&D infrastructure.
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