Inside America’s Nuclear Fuel Revival: Can Washington Deliver on Energy Independence?

In a secure corner of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Tennessee, workers from X-energy are crafting tiny spheres of advanced nuclear fuel—an effort that symbolizes the latest chapter in America’s pursuit of energy independence. These seemingly innocuous gray balls conceal thousands of uranium kernels enriched beyond levels used by today’s reactors, fueling hopes for a new generation of American nuclear power plants.For decades, the United States has watched foreign powers dominate the high-assay low-enriched uranium market critical to next-gen reactors. Today, with President Trump’s executive orders calling to quadruple domestic nuclear output within 25 years, this quiet laboratory is at the...