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Topic: Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Nuclear Energy Blog Brand: Energy World Region: Americas Tags: Advanced Nuclear Reactors, Canada, Department of Energy (DOE), North America, Nuclear Fuel, Nuclear Plant, and United States Nuclear Energy Now – Darlington’s Refurbishment Project Wraps Up Ahead of Schedule February 6, 2026 By: Emily Day
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Nuclear Energy Now tracks the latest nuclear energy developments across technology, diplomacy, industry trends, and geopolitics.
Darlington’s Refurbishment Project Wraps Up Ahead of Schedule
The refurbishment project at Darlington Nuclear Power Plant in Ontario has been completed four months ahead of schedule and $109 million under budget, with Unit 4 expected to return to service later this month. The project, which began in 2016, is reportedly the world’s largest completed nuclear refurbishment project and involved replacing thousands of fuel channels and other critical components, extending the station’s operating life to at least 2055. Once fully operational again, Darlington will provide approximately 3,500 megawatts (MW) of electricity, reinforcing nuclear energy’s important role in Ontario’s grid, where it supplies half of total generation. Ontario Power Generation, which owns and operates Darlington, has said that lessons from Darlington will inform its next phase of nuclear investment, including the construction of four BWRX-300 small modular reactors (SMRs) at the site and the forthcoming refurbishment of four units at Pickering nuclear station.
Argonne Tests AI Tools for the Nuclear Energy Industry
At Argonne National Laboratory, researchers are working to implement artificial intelligence (AI) into the nuclear energy industry in ways that address a core challenge for the United States: deploying new capacity faster without compromising safety or regulatory standards. In collaboration with the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), Argonne is developing and testing AI applications to support plant operations, including tools that can detect equipment faults and help operators anticipate maintenance needs while meeting existing safety standards. In a second project, in partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Nuclear Energy, Argonne is working to improve licensing timelines for advanced reactors, which project lead Akshay Dave noted are often a bottleneck to deployment. The development of the Regulatory Context Protocol (RCP), which focuses on streamlining licensing, uses AI agents representing both nuclear facilities and regulators to automate licensing communication, reducing delays while maintaining NRC compliance. In a third project, Argonne is advancing physics-based AI tools, developing the Parameter-Free Reasoning Operator for Automated Identification and Diagnosis (PRO-AID), which uses “digital twins” of nuclear plant systems to identify abnormal behavior. This work will be essential for the United States in deploying advanced reactors and meeting the Trump administration’s goal of quadrupling US nuclear power capacity to 400 gigawatts (GW) by 2050.
DOE Awards Millions to Advance Nuclear Fuel Recycling
Over the past few weeks, the Trump administration has put a spotlight on used nuclear fuel—establishing the Center for Used Fuel Research (CUFR) and asking states to voluntarily host nuclear waste storage. This week, DOE has awarded over $19 million to five US companies—Alpha Nur, Curio Solutions, Flibe Energy, Oklo, and Shine Technologies—to advance nuclear fuel recycling technologies. The awards, issued through the DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy, are framed as part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to increase nuclear energy capacity in the United States, boost competitiveness, and reduce reliance on foreign sources of enriched uranium ahead of a 2028 cutoff of Russian fuel imports. Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy Ted Garrish said, “Used nuclear fuel is an incredible untapped resource in the United States,” as recycling could extend fuel utilization by 90 percent, reduce waste volumes by 90 percent, and ease uranium supply pressures. Several countries already reprocess used nuclear fuel, including Russia, India, France, and the United Kingdom, while China is constructing a reprocessing facility. As the United States moves to develop its own capabilities, policymakers will need to balance competitiveness goals with longstanding nonproliferation concerns and the signal that US policy sends to other countries with nuclear energy programs.
About the Author: Emily Day
Emily Day is an experienced researcher, writer, and editor with expertise in geopolitics, nuclear energy, and global security. She is an associate editor of Energy World and Techland at The National Interest and a senior research associate at Longview Global Advisors, where she provides insights on global political and economic trends with a specialization in utilities, risk, sustainability, and technology. She was previously a Della Ratta Energy and Global Security Fellow at the Partnership for Global Security.
Image: Robert T Bell/wikimedia commons
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Источник: nationalinterest.org