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January 2, 2013

The Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the Republic of Korea announce that the Republic of Korea has renewed its partnership to combat nuclear smuggling with a $300,000 contribution to support NNSA’s ongoing nonproliferation work in Azerbaijan. The funding will be used for the installation of radiation detection equipment at the Baku Airport.

January 3, 2013

President Barack Obama signs into law the "National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013," which authorizes fiscal year 2013 appropriations for the Department’s national security programs as well as other defense-related programs in the federal government.

January 7, 2013

The Department announces that the Office of Legacy Management has successfully completed a project to digitize nearly 400,000 medical X-rays of former DOE contractor employees. The X-rays, from the Rocky Flats and Grand Junction, Colorado; Fernald, Mound, and Ashtabula, Ohio; and Pinellas, Florida; sites, are needed to support medical compensation claims and must be kept for long-term preservation.

January 8, 2013

The Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory issues a Request for Proposals to participate in DOE's inaugural Collegiate Wind Competition. The Collegiate Wind Competition is a forum for undergraduate college students of multiple disciplines to investigate innovative wind energy concepts; gain experience designing, building, and testing a wind turbine to perform according to a customized market data-derived business plan; and increase their knowledge of wind industry barriers. Successful teams will gain and then demonstrate knowledge of technology, finance, accounting, management, and marketing, providing lifelong technical and business skills. The theme of the inaugural competition is to design and construct a lightweight, transportable wind turbine that can be used to power small electronic devices.

January 8, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces that Consolidated Nuclear Security, LLC, (CNS) has been selected to be the management and operating contractor for the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and the Pantex Plant near Amarillo, Texas. The contract also includes construction project management of the Uranium Processing Facility (UPF) at the Y-12 National Security Complex and an option for unexercised option for Savannah River Tritium Operations at the Savannah River Site in near Aiken, South Carolina. The five-year contract, with options for an additional five years, includes a total available fee of approximately $446 million to manage the three sites for DOE and NNSA work, depending on CNS’ quality of performance.

January 9, 2013

The Department announces that a team led by Ames Laboratory in Ames, Iowa,  has been selected for an award of up to $120 million over five years to establish an Energy Innovation Hub that will develop solutions to the domestic shortages of rare earth metals and other materials critical for U.S. energy security.  The new research center, which will be named the Critical Materials Institute (CMI), will bring together leading researchers from academia, four Department of Energy national laboratories, as well as the private sector. CMI, headquartered at Ames Laboratory, will be directed by Alex King, currently the director of Ames Lab. The Hub will bring together some of the most advanced critical material research programs in the U.S. Other DOE national labs partnering with Ames include Idaho National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Selected through an open national competition with a rigorous merit review process that relied on outside expert reviewers, CMI is the fifth Energy Innovation Hub established by the Department since 2010.

January 9, 2013

The Department’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and the University of Washington (UW) announce the formation of the Northwest Institute for Advanced Computing. Located on UW's campus in Seattle, the institute will be a center of collaboration where UW and PNNL researchers jointly explore advanced computer system designs, accelerate data-driven scientific discovery, and improve computational modeling and simulation. Scientists and engineers at the institute will also train future researchers in modern computational approaches.

January 10, 2013

The Department announces the designation of the Idaho National Laboratory's Wireless Test Bed as a National User Facility, helping to assert U.S. leadership in full-scale research, development, demonstration, and scientific investigation of wireless communications systems. The unique capabilities at this National User Facility will enable industrial, federal and academic researchers to address national challenges in infrastructure security, communications interoperability, spectrum utilization, and the reliability of wireless technologies.

January 11, 2013

A committee of independent advisors to the U.S. Government releases its first draft of a new National Climate Assessment (NCA)—a 400-page synthesis of scientists’ current understanding of climate change and its impacts in the U.S. The Global Change Research Act of 1990 calls for an NCA to be produced at least every four years—the last came out in 2009. The draft NCA is a scientific document—not a policy document—and does not make recommendations regarding actions that might be taken in response to climate change.

January 11, 2013

The Department issues the Strategy for the Management and Disposal of Used Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste, a framework for moving toward a sustainable program to deploy an integrated system capable of transporting, storing, and disposing of used nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste from civilian nuclear power generation, defense, national security, and other activities. The Strategy serves as a statement of Administration policy regarding the importance of addressing the disposition of used nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste, lays out the overall design of a system to address that issue, and outlines the reforms needed to implement such a system. It also presents the Administration’s response to the final report and recommendations made by the Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future. The Strategy includes a phased, adaptive, and consent-based approach to siting and implementing a comprehensive management and disposal system. At its core, this Strategy endorses a waste management system containing a pilot interim storage facility, a larger, full-scale interim storage facility, and a geologic repository in a timeframe that demonstrates the federal commitment to addressing the nuclear waste issue.

January 11, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an Audit Report to determine whether DOE has effectively managed the disposition of surplus nuclear materials. The IG finds that DOE has “strengthened its nuclear materials management program by developing a life cycle nuclear materials management policy, implementing strategic plans for consolidation and disposition of nuclear materials and refining its nuclear materials management organization.” Management challenges nonetheless remain, including DOE not having “designated certain nuclear materials as National Assets to enable retention and continued availability.”

January 14, 2013

Adam Sieminski, Administrator of DOE's Energy Information Administration (EIA), discusses the U.S. energy outlook before the International Monetary Fund in Washington, DC.

January 14, 2013

The Department’s Bonneville Power Administration and Portland General Electric (PGE) announce they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to pursue a modification to PGE’s proposed Cascade Crossing Transmission Project that could benefit the region’s grid while significantly reducing environmental impacts. PGE initially proposed a 215-mile transmission project from Boardman, OR, to Salem, OR. Under the modification in the MOU, the line would begin at Boardman and follow the path of the original project, but terminate at a new Pine Grove substation that PGE would build about 18 miles southwest of Maupin. This would eliminate about 101 miles of the project from the Maupin area to Salem

January 15, 2013

Secretary of Energy Steven Chu and Governor of the State of Washington Chris Gregoire issue a joint statement, noting that over the last several months the Department and Washington State have worked together closely to ensure that the Waste Treatment Plant at DOE's Hanford site is on a stable path to resolving the technical issues, completing construction, and beginning to treat waste in the coming years. “Based on insight gathered from a number leading scientific experts,” they state that “the Department is now confident construction activities at the High-Level Waste facility can begin to be ramped back up.”

January 15, 2013

Secretary Chu tours Catholic University’s Vitreous State Laboratory, seeing work in support of the safe immobilization of nuclear wastes at DOE sites around the country.

January 15, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces the award of a contract to Siemens Government Technologies, Inc., to construct and operate the federal government’s largest wind farm. The Pantex wind farm, a first in the NNSA enterprise, will consist of five 2.3 megawatt turbines located on 1,500 acres of government-owned property east of the Pantex Plant.

January 16, 2013

The Department announces the selection of Bill Drummond to be the new Administrator for the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), one of the four Power Marketing Administrations the Department oversees. As BPA’s Administrator, Drummond will be responsible for managing the non-profit federal agency, which markets carbon-free power from Columbia River hydroelectric dams and operates the surrounding power grid, distributing wind, nuclear and other energy to the Pacific Northwest and beyond. “The leadership of BPA is critically important,” states Secretary Chu, “because America’s continued global competiveness in the 21st century will be significantly affected by whether we can efficiently produce and distribute electricity to businesses and consumers, seamlessly integrating new technologies and new sources of power.”

January 16, 2013

The Department announces the availability of more than $12 million to accelerate innovations within the solar industry as part of the latest round of SunShot Incubator. Projects will focus on two key areas: scaling-up innovations in solar hardware and reducing the non-hardware “soft costs” of solar -- which can account for nearly half the cost of a solar energy system.

January 16, 2013

A study by researchers at DOE’s Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center finds that marginal lands ­– those unsuited for food crops – could be a major resource for growing mixed species cellulosic biomass, plants grown specifically for fuel production. Up to 5.5 billion gallons of ethanol could be produced from marginal lands in the U.S. Midwest alone, representing about 25 percent of Congress’ 2022 cellulosic biofuels target.

January 17, 2013

The Department launches the Building America Solution Center -- an online tool designed for professional homebuilders, remodelers, architects, designers, building science educators, researchers, and code officials. The Center provides access to expert information on hundreds of high-performance construction topics, including air sealing and insulation, HVAC components, windows, and indoor air quality.

January 17, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the State of Maryland announce the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) intended to strengthen efforts to prevent, mitigate, and respond to radiological/nuclear threats and incidents in Maryland.

January 17, 2013

A study by researchers at DOE’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory predicts that spending on energy efficiency programs funded by electric and natural gas utility customers will double by 2025 to about $9.5 billion per year. Electricity savings in 2025 could offset the majority of load growth forecasted through that year.

January 18, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) issues a special Short-Term Energy Outlook Supplement on how natural gas supply constraints in New England could affect the region's energy prices over the rest of the winter. Recent forward market prices indicate that New England's high natural gas prices could persist and rival northwestern European prices.

January 21, 2013

President Obama, in his second term Inaugural Address, declares that “our obligations as Americans are not just to ourselves, but to all posterity. We will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future generations.” He notes that the “path towards sustainable energy sources will be long and sometimes difficult. But America cannot resist this transition, we must lead it. We cannot cede to other nations the technology that will power new jobs and new industries, we must claim its promise. That’s how we will maintain our economic vitality and our national treasure.”

January 23, 2013

The National Research Council issues a report on U.S. DRIVE, calling the operation and management of the technical teams generally "exemplary," but finding that its Executive Steering Group has not provided adequate guidance for fitting the technical teams' work into an overall plan for the partnership's goals of reduced petroleum use. The public-private partnership has made steady progress in creating viable alternatives to gas-powered vehicles, according to the report, but formidable technical barriers have prevented the emergence of a stand-out contender to replace petroleum. U.S. DRIVE is a government-industry partnership conducting precompetitive research and development to help accelerate the emergence of advanced technologies for clean and efficient light-duty vehicles that could eventually compete commercially with petroleum vehicles. The partnership participants include four automotive companies, five energy companies, two electric power companies, and the Electric Power Research Institute, with DOE providing federal leadership. The partnership has determined three potential primary pathways to reaching significantly reduced petroleum consumption: improved internal combustion engine vehicles coupled with greater use of biofuels and natural gas in conventional or hybrid vehicles; expanded use of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and battery electric vehicles; and the possible transition to hydrogen as a transportation fuel.

January 24, 2013

The Department’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) announces that a new supercomputer expected to rank among the world's fastest machines will be ready to run computationally intense climate and biological simulations along with other scientific programs by the summer. This computational work will aid research in climate and environmental science, chemical processes, biology-based fuels that can replace fossil fuels, new materials for energy applications and more. The supercomputer will be at DOE’s Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a national user facility located at PNNL.

January 25, 2013

The Department announces that a “breakthrough” carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) project in Texas has begun capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) and piping it to an oilfield for use in enhanced oil recovery. The project at Air Products and Chemicals hydrogen production facility in Port Arthur is significant for demonstrating both the effectiveness and commercial viability of CCUS technology as an option in helping mitigate atmospheric CO2 emissions. Funded in part through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the project is managed by the DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory. The Department is collaborating with industry in cost-sharing arrangements to demonstrate these next-generation technologies.

January 28, 2013

The Department’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability (OE) announces changes to its organizational structure to become “more nimble, strategic, and innovative in an increasingly complex and rapidly-changing environment.” The changes, which included creating a separate Smart Grid Investment Program division, adding an Energy Infrastructure Modeling and Analysis division, and re-structuring two divisions, are designed to lead to a sharper focus on mission areas, improved decision-making, and greater operational efficiencies. Protection of the nation’s electric grid and energy infrastructure from cyber threats remains a strategic priority across the organization, reflecting OE’s view that cybersecurity must be built into technology from the beginning and be a crucial element at all stages, including the culture, operations, and strategy of the energy sector. The reorganization reinforces the critical importance of this area.

January 29, 2013

The Department’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability announces the release of four reports on the impact of the Recovery Act-funded Smart Grid Investment Grant (SGIG) Program. Under the SGIG Program, investor-owned and municipal utilities, transmission operators, and electric co-ops across the U.S. are deploying a range of smart technologies and systems designed to increase the electric grid’s flexibility, reliability, efficiency, affordability, and resilience.

January 29, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an Audit Report examining the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) nuclear weapons dismantlement and nuclear weapon components disposition program, finding that the NNSA has met or exceeded its goals for 2010 and 2011. The IG finds, however, potential issues related to the infrastructure for staging nuclear weapons, nuclear weapon components, and other weapon components at the Pantex Plant that could impact future dismantlement efforts

January 30, 2013

The Department announces the second round of the Strategic Technical Assistance Response Team (START) Program, which provides federally recognized Tribal governments with technical assistance to accelerate clean energy project deployment. Additionally, DOE plans to seek information from Tribes interested in launching or expanding utility services in their own communities, which will help establish a new START Utility Program (START-UP). The START Program was launched in December 2011.

January 30, 2013

The Department announces seven data-driven projects, as part of DOE's SunShot Initiative, to unearth new opportunities for reducing costs and accelerating solar energy deployment in the U.S. The Department will invest about $9 million across the seven projects to help scientists, project developers, installers, and communities work together to discover previously unexplored ways to improve solar cell efficiency, reduce costs, and streamline installation processes.

January 30, 2013

The Obama administration, in a White House blog post, highlights the “best year ever” in 2012 for the nation’s wind industry, “with more than 13,000 MW installed. In the fourth quarter alone, more than 8,000 MW were deployed – an all-time record for the industry and twice as much wind as the previous record.”

January 31, 2013

Secretary Chu, in a speech at the Washington Auto Show, announces the new Workplace Charging Challenge, which aims to expand the availability of workplace charging, increasing the convenience of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) and providing drivers with more options. Thirteen major U.S. employers and eight stakeholder groups have pledged to assess workforce PEV charging demands, and then develop and implement a plan to install workplace charging infrastructure for at least one major worksite location. The Challenge supports the broader efforts of the Department’s EV Everywhere Grand Challenge, announced by President Obama in March 2012, to make PEVs as affordable and convenient for the American family as gasoline-powered vehicles within the next 10 years.

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February 1, 2013

Secretary Chu, in a letter to DOE employees, highlights the progress made over the past four years and announces that he will be stepping down as secretary of energy. “I plan to stay on as Secretary past the ARPA-E Summit at the end of February,” he notes. “I may stay beyond that time so that I can leave the Department in the hands of the new Secretary.” President Obama issues a statement thanking Secretary Chu for his “dedicated service on behalf of the American people,” and his “unique understanding of both the urgent challenge presented by climate change and the tremendous opportunity that clean energy represents for our economy.” At a ceremony for the 2011 National Medals of Science, the President thanks the Secretary, noting that he “has been a great friend, a tremendous colleague over the past four years, working on a whole range of energy issues . . . . Because of his leadership, this country is further along on the path to energy independence.  It’s better positioned for the jobs and industries of the future.”

February 1, 2013

The Department notifies employees in an email that it “has just confirmed a recent cyber incident that occurred in mid-January which targeted the Headquarters’ network and resulted in the unauthorized disclosure of employee and contractor Personally Identifiable Information (PII). . . . We believe several hundred DOE employees’ and contractors’ PII may have been affected. As individual affected employees are identified, they will be notified and offered assistance on steps they can take to protect themselves from potential identity theft.” No classified data was compromised.

February 1, 2013

The Department awards a $3.1 million, five-year cooperative agreement to the Energy Communities Alliance of Washington, D.C., to continue collaborate efforts between DOE and local governments to solve challenges posed by the Office of Environmental Management’s nuclear waste management, changing DOE missions, and ongoing cleanup at DOE sites.

February 4, 2013

The Department announces the beginning of Phase II of project development with a new cooperative agreement with the FutureGen Industrial Alliance for a carbon capture and storage (CCS) project in Illinois. The completion of the FutureGen 2.0 project’s first phase included important technical and financial milestones like the identification of a sequestration site in Morgan County, Illinois, preliminary characterization and test drilling, and a commitment from the Illinois Commerce Commission to cover the FutureGen 2.0 project’s output under its power purchasing plans. Phase II will build on these successes to begin preliminary design, pre-construction and engineering for the retrofitted, near-zero emission coal-fired power plant. In cooperation with the FutureGen project partners, the Department is investing in the upgrade of a coal-fired power plant with oxy-combustion technology to capture more than 1 million tons of CO2 each year—more than 90 percent of the plant’s carbon emissions. Other emissions will also be reduced to near-zero levels. Instead of capturing CO2 in the presence of a large amount of nitrogen, the oxy-combustion approach extracts the oxygen from air before combustion, greatly reducing the cost of carbon capture at the exhaust stack.

February 5, 2013

Adam Sieminski, Administrator of DOE's Energy Information Administration (EIA), testifies before the Subcommittee on Energy and Power of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on North American energy resources.

February 6, 2013

Deputy Secretary Daniel Poneman tours the Caithness Shepherds Flat wind farm in eastern Oregon. Turbines at Shepherds Flat officially began generating energy in fall 2012, and the project is able to create up to 845 megawatts of emission-free wind power (enough electricity to power nearly 260,000 homes). The $2.3 billion project was supported by a $1.3 billion partial loan guarantee from DOE in 2010. Poneman posts an article on the Energy Blog.

February 7, 2013

The Department jointly announces with the U.S. Department of the Treasury the availability of $150 million in Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credits for clean energy and energy efficiency manufacturing projects across the U.S. This tax program is focused on strengthening America’s global competitiveness in clean energy manufacturing, increasing its energy security, and creating new jobs and opportunities for American workers. The Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit was established by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to support investment in domestic, clean energy and energy efficiency manufacturing facilities through a competitively-awarded 30 percent investment tax credit. The initial round provided $2.3 billion in credits to 183 projects across the country. The $150 million in tax credits are being made available now because they were not used by the previous awardees.

February 8, 2013

The Department’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability issues a new Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), Innovation for Increasing Cybersecurity for Energy Delivery Systems. The FOA is seeking applications to conduct research, development, and demonstrations leading to next generation tools and technologies that will become widely adopted to enhance and accelerate deployment of cybersecurity capabilities for the U.S energy infrastructure, including cyber secure integration of smart grid technologies.

February 12, 2013

President Obama issues a statement on North Korea announcement that it has conducted a third nuclear test. The President also speaks to South Korea President Lee Myung-bak to consult and coordinate on the response to the test.

February 12, 2013

President Obama delivers the State of the Union Address, with extended remarks on energy issues. The President states the “first priority is making America a magnet for new jobs and manufacturing,” and to accomplish this the nation needs “a level of research and development not seen since the height of the Space Race.” He notes that “no area holds more promise than our investments in American energy. After years of talking about it, we are finally poised to control our own energy future. We produce more oil at home than we have in 15 years. We have doubled the distance our cars will go on a gallon of gas, and the amount of renewable energy we generate from sources like wind and solar . . . . We produce more natural gas than ever before . . . . But for the sake of our children and our future, we must do more to combat climate change. Yes, it’s true that no single event makes a trend.  But the fact is, the 12 hottest years on record have all come in the last 15.  Heat waves, droughts, wildfires, and floods – all are now more frequent and intense. . . . The good news is, we can make meaningful progress on this issue while driving strong economic growth. I urge this Congress to pursue a bipartisan, market-based solution to climate change . . . . But if Congress won’t act soon to protect future generations, I will. I will direct my Cabinet to come up with executive actions we can take, now and in the future, to . . . speed the transition to more sustainable sources of energy. . . . Four years ago, other countries dominated the clean energy market and the jobs that came with it. We’ve begun to change that. . . . [M]uch of our new-found energy is drawn from lands and waters that we, the public, own together.  So tonight, I propose we use some of our oil and gas revenues to fund an Energy Security Trust that will drive new research and technology to shift our cars and trucks off oil for good.”

February 12, 2013

President Obama signs two documents designed to strengthen the nation’s critical infrastructure, including the electric power grid and oil and natural gas, against cyber and other attacks. The first is a new Executive Order (EO) 13636 that directs the U.S. government to work with U.S. companies to share information on threats and to assist critical infrastructure owners and operators in the protection of their systems. The EO was developed in tandem with a new Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience Presidential Policy Directive that is designed to reduce vulnerabilities from all hazards including cyber. This includes minimizing consequences, identifying and disrupting threats, and speeding up response and recovery efforts. As the sector-specific agency for energy, DOE has a unique role in protecting and enhancing the nation’s critical energy infrastructure.

February 12, 2013

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and DOE’s Office of Science announce that they will coordinate their climate modeling research programs. A newly signed agreement will result in more detailed and complex climate models that will advance the ability to produce climate projections on a finer scale, over longer timeframes, and with greater certainty so they can more readily be used by decision makers to plan for changing climate conditions.

February 12, 2013

The Department’s Western Area Power Administration announces that construction will begin on a transmission line and substation to connect the renewable-rich zone south of Phoenix, Ariz., with the Palo Verde market hub, a major electrical trading hub in the western U.S. This is the first major construction step for the Electrical District No. 5 - Palo Verde Hub Project.

February 13, 2013

Heather Zichal, Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change, answers questions from the public about the President’s State of the Union Address in an “Open for Questions” session moderated by Popular Science.

February 13, 2013

Adam Sieminski, Administrator of DOE's Energy Information Administration (EIA), testifies before the Subcommittee on Energy of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology on the U.S. energy outlook.

February 13, 2013

The Department announces that it is collaborating with the University of Alaska Fairbanks ACEP (Alaska Center for Energy and Power) to support in-depth technical and economic analysis of wind-diesel energy systems in rural Alaska. The resulting report will evaluate the costs and benefits of installing hybrid power systems in Alaska Native villages to alleviate high energy costs by reducing dependence on imported fossil fuels.

February 14, 2013

The Department announces that its support for a decade of revolutionary research has contributed to the creation of the first ever retinal prosthesis – or bionic eye – to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for blind individuals with end-stage retinitis pigmentosa. The artificial retina, dubbed the Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System (developed and manufactured by Second Sight Medical Products Inc., Sylmar, California) may prove to be an aid to those blinded by the disease retinitis pigmentosa, which can run in families and is estimated by the National Institutes of Health to affect about 1 in 4,000 people in the U.S. The Argus II can partially restore the sight of blind individuals after surgical implantation. Clinical trials demonstrated that totally blind individuals could safely use the device to successfully identify the position and approximate size of objects and detect movement of nearby objects and people. Over the ten year lifetime of the project, the Department provided $75.2 million for the development of technologies aimed at advancing artificial retinas like the Argus II, which was based on work by a consortium of scientists using advanced technologies developed by several of DOE’s National Laboratories.

February 14, 2013

The Department’s Los Alamos National Laboratory announces that a quantum cryptography team has successfully completed the first-ever demonstration of securing control data for electric grids using quantum cryptography. The demonstration was performed in the electric grid test bed that is part of the Trustworthy Cyber Infrastructure for the Power Grid project at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign that was set up under DOE’s Cyber Security for Energy Delivery Systems program in the Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability.

February 14, 2013

The Department’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory announces that scientists using the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory’s Linac Coherent Light Source, the world’s most powerful X-ray laser, have been able to simultaneously look at the structure and chemical behavior of photosynthesis. A better understanding of the chemistry behind the catalytic activities could pave the way for new technologies, most prominently artificial photosynthesis systems that would provide clean, green, and renewable energy.

February 14, 2013

The Government Accountability Office (GAO), in its biennial update to its list of government operations that it identifies as high risk due to their greater vulnerabilities to fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement or the need for transformation to address economy, efficiency, or effectiveness challenges, removes the capital asset projects of $750 million or less of DOE’s Office of Environmental Management (EM) from the list. The GAO says it recognizes progress on EM projects of $750 million or less and is shifting the focus of EM's high-risk designation more to major contracts and projects greater than $750 million. “This is good news for EM because it marks an important step in our contract and project management improvement strategy,” says DOE Senior Advisor for Environmental Management Dave Huizenga. “However, we still have work to do.”

February 15, 2013

The Department announces, as part of the Energy Data Initiative, the creation of a new resource hub for open energy data. Energy.gov/data includes targeted features for different groups of data customers. For coders, the resource hub includes featured developer tools such as new Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). There also are features on popular open datasets and search tools that are valuable for students, regulators, and energy professionals. Government managers of open data, particularly those that are familiar with the Data.gov platform, will take advantage of new “federated search” capabilities by leveraging a growing data catalogue.  Finally, entrepreneurs and job creators will be able to see exactly how open data is fueling economic growth and even contribute their own stories if they so choose. The Department holds a Google+ hangout with experts from DOE, Google, and Honest Buildings discuss the impact of open data.

February 15, 2013

The Department’s Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) announces the  launch of the National Library of EnergyBeta (NLEBeta), a virtual library and open government resource to advance energy literacy, innovation and security. The NLEBeta search feature provides one-stop, easy access to information about DOE and its work in four broad mission areas - science and R&D results; energy and technology for industry and homeowners; energy market information and analysis; and nuclear security and environmental management.

February 15, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency commemorate 25 years of nonproliferation cooperation at the 25th Permanent Coordinating Group Meeting in Tokai, Japan. This cooperation represents one of NNSA’s longest-standing international partnerships and has yielded more than 100 successful nonproliferation and nuclear security projects to date.

February 19, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an Audit Report examining the National Nuclear Security Administration contractor governance program, which since 2007 has required contractors to implement self-assessment systems to measure performance and help ensure effective and efficient mission accomplishment. The IG finds that NNSA and its support offices and site contractors have not yet implemented fully functional and effective contractor assurance systems.

February 19, 2013

The Department’s Sandia National Laboratories celebrates the formal opening of its Cybersecurity Engineering Research Laboratory (CERL). Activities at CERL are expected to marry computing expertise from across Sandia Labs with that of universities and businesses to develop long-term solutions against the increasingly serious challenges posed by hackers and cybercriminals to individuals, business, and government.

February 20, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces the successful completion of the Facilities and Infrastructure Recapitalization Program (FIRP). FIRP was established in 2001 to reduce a substantial accumulation of backlogged facility maintenance, repair and demolition projects across NNSA’s eight sites.

February 20, 2013

The National Research Council issues a report finding that potential benefits of successful development of an inertial confinement fusion-based energy technology justify investment in fusion energy research and development as part of the long-term U.S. energy R&D portfolio. Although ignition of the fusion fuel has not yet been achieved, scientific and technological progress in inertial confinement fusion over the past decade has been substantial. Developing inertial fusion energy would require establishment of a national, coordinated, broad-based program, but achievement of ignition is a prerequisite.

February 21, 2013

The Department announces that Johnson Controls, Macy’s and Sprint are joining the Better Buildings Challenge. Launched by President Obama in 2011, the Better Buildings Challenge brings together corporations, universities, municipalities and other national leaders to make significant commitments to energy efficiency, reduce waste, and save on energy costs. Johnson Controls, Macy’s, and Sprint will upgrade more than 200 million square feet of building space to cut energy use by at least 20 percent by 2020.

February 21, 2013

Secretary Chu announces the availability of up to $20 million for the development of tools and technologies to enhance the cybersecurity of the nation’s energy delivery control systems for electricity, oil, and gas.  As part of this funding, the Department will require that award recipients collaborate with the energy sector to test the developed technologies so that they are best designed to meet the unique requirements of energy delivery systems.

February 21, 2013

The Department announces the demolition of the C-340 Metals Complex at the Paducah site. Better known as the Metals Plant, the facility was used to manufacture uranium metal during the Cold War and contained polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), radionuclides, and asbestos. The Metals Plant encompassed about 1.5 million cubic feet.

February 21, 2013

The American Petroleum Institute and other groups appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court a D.C. Circuit Court decision rejecting a challenge to the Environmental Protection Agency’s grant of partial waivers for use of the ethanol-gasoline blend, E15.

February 22, 2013

Secretary Chu and experts from across the solar industry do a Google+ hangout and discuss the SunShot Initiative, the role solar power is playing in the growing clean energy economy, and the future of solar in the U.S.

February 22, 2013

Representatives from the Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence, and Russia’s State Atomic Energy Corporation (Rosatom) meet in Vienna, Austria, for their Seventh Annual Nuclear Security Best Practices Exchange. The two-day workshop focuses on overcoming challenges associated with securing nuclear materials worldwide.

February 22, 2013

The Department and its National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) issue the Final Site-Wide Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) and Off-Site Locations in Nevada. The document presents an analysis of the potential environmental impacts of continued management and operation of the NNSS (formerly known as the Nevada Test Site), the Tonopah Test Range, and two locations in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Site-Wide EIS analyzes reasonably foreseeable missions, programs, capabilities, and projects for a 10-year period.

February 25, 2013

The Department announces that employees of Remedial Action Contractor will return to work on the Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project on March 4, following a 3-month planned furlough. Project shipping and disposal operations have been shut down, as planned, since late November 2012. The mill tailings are shipped by train 30 miles north of the Moab, Utah, site to a disposal cell constructed near Crescent Junction, Utah. Almost 36 percent of the total 16 million tons of tailings has already been placed in the disposal cell.

February 25, 2013

Business Roundtable, an association of chief executive officers of leading U.S. companies, releases Taking Action on Energy: A CEO Vision for America’s Energy Future, a “detailed, comprehensive national energy strategy to capitalize on U.S. strengths and accelerate economic growth and job creation.”

February 25-27, 2013

The three-day, third annual Energy Innovation Summit, sponsored by DOE's Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E) and held at the Gaylord Convention Center outside Washington, DC, begins with the ARPA-E program directors providing a look at the impact of the research grants they manage and the processes for selecting their technologies. Experts in panel discussions provide insight into contracting and conducting business with the military installation energy market, assessing the commercial viability of energy technologies on a regional scale, and protecting intellectual property for entrepreneurs and startups. On day two, ARPA-E Deputy Director Cheryl Martin announces that 17 ARPA-E projects have attracted over $450 million in private sector follow-on funding after ARPA-E’s initial investment of approximately $70 million, 12 have leveraged their technologies to form new companies, and over ten have partnered with other government agencies for later stage investment. Days two and three also feature keynote speakers including New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, former Governor Mitch Daniels, and entrepreneur T. Boone Pickens, comments by Senators Chris Coons (D-DE), Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Ron Wyden (D-OR), and a fireside chat with Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk and Secretary Chu.

February 26, 2013

The National Science and Technology Council releases A Policy Framework for the 21st Century Grid: A Progress Report—an update highlighting the Administration’s most recent achievements to make the Nation’s electric grid stronger, smarter, and cleaner.

February 26, 2013

The White House Council on Environmental Quality hosts a GreenGov Dialogue on Demand Response that brings together leaders from government, the private sector, non-profits, and academia to identify opportunities to reduce our peak energy demand, promote a more stable electric grid, and help the Federal Government save energy and money in its operations.

February 27, 2013

The Department’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory announces that an international team of scientists has definitively measured the spin rate of a supermassive black hole for the first time. The findings, made by the two X-ray space observatories, NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) and the European Space Agency's XMM-Newton, solve a long-standing debate about similar measurements in other black holes and will lead to a better understanding of how black holes and galaxies evolve.

February 28, 2013

The Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Energy announce a new collaboration -- the State Energy Extension Partnership -- to equip farm families and rural small businesses with the efficiency tools, resources, and training needed to reduce energy costs. USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture and Rural Development are partnering with DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy to develop a nationwide program through local collaboration of the Land Grant University System, Cooperative Extension Service, and State Energy Offices. This partnership will facilitate community-based education and outreach programs.

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March 1, 2013

Secretary Chu forwards the final recommendations of the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) and DOE Joint Outreach Team (JOT) to the WAPA administrator along with a request that WAPA prepare an implementation plan. The JOT was formed in response to the Secretary’s memorandum sent to the four Power Marketing Administrations (PMA) on March 16, 2012, calling on the PMAs to take a leadership role in transforming and modernizing the nation’s electric grid for the 21st century. Secretary Chu elected to begin this effort with WAPA in April 2012.

March 4, 2013

President Obama nominates Dr. Ernest Moniz to be the next Secretary of Energy. Moniz is the Cecil and Ida Green Professor of Physics and Engineering Systems at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he was a faculty member since 1973.  At MIT, he headed the Department of Physics and the Bates Linear Accelerator Center.  Most recently, Moniz has served as the founding Director of the MIT Energy Initiative and of the MIT Laboratory for Energy and the Environment and is a leader of multidisciplinary technology and policy studies on the future of nuclear power, coal, nuclear fuel cycles, natural gas, and solar energy in a low-carbon world. From 1997 until January 2001, Moniz served as Under Secretary of the Department of Energy.  He was responsible for overseeing DOE’s science and energy programs, leading a comprehensive review of nuclear weapons stockpile stewardship, and serving as the Secretary’s special negotiator for the disposition of Russian nuclear materials. From 1995 to 1997, he served as Associate Director for Science in the Office of Science and Technology Policy in the Executive Office of the President.

March 4, 2013

The Department’s Bonneville Power Administration announces that it has refined its process for ensuring transmission system reliability and protecting fish when there is too much power for the region to consume and has filed its revised process, called the Oversupply Management Protocol, with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Under the oversupply policy, generators who elect to submit costs and supporting data are reimbursed for payments they would otherwise receive for producing power.

March 5, 2013

The Department announces that 16 major U.S. employers and two stakeholder groups have joined the Workplace Charging Challenge to give more American workers access to new transportation options, while another three U.S. corporations have joined the National Clean Fleets Partnership. As part of DOE’s EV Everywhere Grand Challenge, announced in March 2012, the Workplace Charging Challenge aims to expand the availability of workplace charging for American workers – increasing the convenience of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) and providing drivers with more options. The National Clean Fleets Partnership, a broad public-private partnership first announced by President Obama in 2011, assists the nation’s largest fleet operators in reducing the amount of gasoline and diesel they use nationwide.

March 5, 2013

Director of DOE’s Office of Science William Brinkman testifies before the House Subcommittee on Energy & Water Appropriations on the budget sequestration’s impact on programs, facilities, and construction projects.

March 6, 2013

The Department announces its preferred alternative to retrieve, treat, package, characterize, and certify defense-related mixed transuranic tank waste at the Hanford site for disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in Carlsbad, New Mexico. The preferred alternative, which may cover up to approximately 3.1 million gallons of tank waste contained in up to 20 tanks, will provide DOE with an option to deal with recent information about possible tank leaks and to expedite the overall tank waste retrieval effort at Hanford.

March 7, 2013

The Department of Justice announces that Colorado-based CH2M Hill Hanford Group Inc. (CHG) and its parent company, CH2M Hill Companies Ltd. (CH2M Hill) have agreed that CHG committed federal criminal violations as a DOE contractor managing 177 large underground storage tanks containing mixed radioactive and hazardous waste at the Hanford site between 1999 and 2008, defrauding the public by engaging in years of widespread time card fraud. In order to resolve CHG’s civil and criminal liability, CH2M Hill has agreed to pay a total of $18.5 million, commit an additional $500,000 towards accountability systems, consent to a corporate monitor, and to continue actively cooperating with the ongoing fraud investigation.

March 11, 2013

The Department announces a new funding opportunity to help U.S. industry design and certify innovative small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs). Small modular reactors – which are approximately one-third the size of current nuclear power plants – have compact, scalable designs that are expected to offer a host of safety, construction and economic benefits. DOE is seeking 300 megawatts or smaller reactor designs that can be made in factories and transported to sites where they would be ready to “plug and play” upon arrival. The smaller size reduces both capital costs and construction times and also makes these reactors ideal for small electric grids and for locations that cannot support large reactors. DOE will solicit proposals for cost-shared small modular reactor projects that have the potential to be licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and achieve commercial operation around 2025, while offering innovative and effective solutions for enhanced safety, operations and performance. Selected projects will span a five-year period with at least 50 percent provided by private industry. Federal funding for this solicitation and the project announced last year will be derived from the total $452 million identified for the Department’s Small Modular Reactor Licensing Technical Support program.

March 11, 2013

The Department, in a Federal Register notice, announces its preferred alternative for wastes contained in underground radioactive waste storage tanks evaluated in the Final Tank Closure and Waste Management Environmental Impact Statement for the Hanford Site. With regard to those wastes that, in the future, may be properly and legally classified as mixed transuranic waste (mixed TRU waste), DOE's preferred alternative is to retrieve, treat, package, and characterize and certify the wastes for disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in Carlsbad, New Mexico.

March 11, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and Temple University announce the successful shipment of a radiological device from the university’s Old Medical School Building. Formerly used as a research irradiator for medical research, the device helped to make critical advancements in medical science for the past two decades. The material contained within the irradiator however, cesium-137, could be attractive for use in a dirty bomb. NNSA removed the irradiator and transported it to a secure location where it will be prepared for disposal at a federal facility.

March 11, 2013

The Department’s National Energy Technology Laboratory announces the release of data from an innovative test conducted in 2012 that used carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen (N2) injection to release natural gas from methane hydrates at a well on the Alaska North Slope. Methane hydrate – essentially molecules of natural gas trapped in ice crystals – represents a potentially enormous energy resource, possibly exceeding the combined energy content of all other fossil fuels. CO2 injection into methane hydrate deposits is a technology that can potentially both release an energy resource while permanently storing carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas.

March 13, 2013

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announces the approval of three major renewable energy projects that, when built, are expected to deliver 1,100 megawatts to the grid – enough to power more than 340,000 homes. The 750-megawatt McCoy Solar Energy Project and 150-megawatt Desert Harvest Solar Farm are both located in California's Riverside East Solar Energy Zone, an area established through the Western Solar Energy Plan as most suitable for solar development. The 200-megawatt Searchlight Wind Energy Project will be constructed on public lands in Clark County, Nevada.

March 14, 2013

Deputy Secretary Poneman and Brunei Minister of Energy Pehin Dato Mohammad Yasmin Umar meet and agree that the U.S. and Brunei will create, and jointly chair, a new work stream of activities on renewable energy power generation to promote and accelerate the deployment of renewable energy technologies in the countries of the East Asia Summit (EAS). This work will be advanced by DOE and its laboratories and the newly-established Brunei National Energy Research Institute, with all EAS countries encouraged to participate and to contribute. This effort responds to commitments made by President Obama and other leaders at the East Asia Summit in November 2012.

March 15, 2013

President Obama tours the Department’s Argonne National Laboratory and in remarks discusses the state of “American energy” and reiterates his call made in the State of the Union Address for an Energy Security Trust. “Just a few years ago, the American auto industry was flat-lining,” the President notes. “Today, thanks in part to discoveries made right here at Argonne, some of the most high-tech, fuel-efficient, pretty spiffy cars in the world are once again designed, engineered and built here in the United States. . . . And few pieces of business are more important for us than getting our energy future right. So here at Argonne, and other labs around the country, scientists are working on getting us where we need to get 10 years from now, 20 years from now. Today, what most Americans feel first when it comes to energy prices -- or energy issues are prices that they pay at the pump. And over the past few weeks, we saw -- we went through another spike in gas prices. . . . So we’re making progress, but the only way to really break this cycle of spiking gas prices, the only way to break that cycle for good is to shift our cars entirely -- our cars and trucks -- off oil. That’s why . . . I called on Congress to set up an Energy Security Trust to fund research into new technologies that will help us reach that goal.” Under the President's proposal, the U.S. would set aside $2 billion over 10 years to support research into a range of cost-effective technologies, such as advanced vehicles that run on electricity, homegrown biofuels, fuel cells, and domestically produced natural gas. The White House issues a Fact Sheet on “President Obama’s Blueprint for a Clean and Secure Energy Future.”

March 15, 2013

The Department announces that the Draft Uranium Leasing Program Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (ULP PEIS) is available for public review and comment. Under the Uranium Leasing Program, DOE’s Office of Legacy Management manages 31 tracts of land in Mesa, Montrose, and San Miguel counties in Colorado – approximately 25,000 acres – that are leased to private entities for uranium and vanadium mining. No mining operations are active on these lands at this time. DOE is preparing the ULP PEIS to analyze the reasonably foreseeable potential environmental impacts, including the site-specific and cumulative impacts, of a range of selected alternatives for managing the program.

March 16, 2013

President Obama, in his weekly address recorded at DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory following his tour and remarks, discusses the need to harness American energy in order to reduce dependence on oil and his proposal to create an Energy Security Trust.

March 18, 2013

The National Research Council issues a report finding that by the year 2050, the U.S. may be able to reduce petroleum consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent for light-duty vehicles -- cars and small trucks -- via a combination of more efficient vehicles; the use of alternative fuels like biofuels, electricity, and hydrogen; and strong government policies to overcome high costs and influence consumer choices. While achieving these goals will be difficult, improving technologies driven by strong and effective policies could make deep reductions possible.

March 19, 2013

Deputy Secretary Poneman and Brazil’s Deputy Minister of Mines and Energy Márcio Pereira Zimmermann co-chair the second meeting of the Strategic Energy Dialogue announced by President Obama and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff in March 2011. The intent of the dialogue is to provide an overarching framework to deepen energy cooperation between the two nations’ energy sectors. The first meeting was held in August 2011.

March 19, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) releases data indicating that total energy consumption in the U.S. manufacturing sector decreased by 17 percent from 2002 to 2010. Manufacturing gross output decreased by only 3 percent over the same period. Taken together, these data indicate a significant decline in the amount of energy used per unit of gross manufacturing output. The significant decline in energy intensity reflects both improvements in energy efficiency and changes in the manufacturing output mix. Consumption of every fuel used for manufacturing declined over this period.

March 19, 2013

The Department’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory announces that researchers have performed record simulations using all 1,572,864 cores of Sequoia, the largest supercomputer in the world. Sequoia, based on IBM BlueGene/Q architecture, is the first machine to exceed one million computational cores. It also is No. 2 on the list of the world's fastest supercomputers, operating at 16.3 petaflops (16.3 quadrillion floating point operations per second). The simulations are the largest particle-in-cell (PIC) code simulations by number of cores ever performed. PIC simulations are used extensively in plasma physics to model the motion of the charged particles, and the electromagnetic interactions between them, that make up ionized matter. High performance computers such as Sequoia enable these codes to follow the simultaneous evolution of tens of billions to trillions of individual particles in highly complex systems.

March 21, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an Audit Report examining DOE’s Industrial Carbon Capture and Storage Program (Carbon Program) with nearly $1.5 billion of funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory awarded 46 cooperative agreements to a variety of demonstration and research and development projects requiring substantial involvement by Federal project managers and relying on recipients to share in the investments needed to complete the projects. The IG finds that DOE has not always effectively managed the Carbon Program and the use of Recovery Act funds.

March 22, 2013

The Department announces that approximately $40 million from its Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) will be made available for two new programs to aid development of technologies to reduce the consumption of oil by cars and trucks. The first program will develop cost effective and energy efficient manufacturing techniques to process and recycle metals that could help make lighter vehicles. The second program will develop biological technologies that will improve the conversion of natural gas to liquids for transportation fuels, designed to reduce vehicle emissions compared to conventional gasoline engines.

March 22, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the Kingdom of the Netherlands announce that they have expanded their cooperation to reduce global nuclear and radiological threats. Under an agreement signed with NNSA’s Office of Global Threat Reduction (GTRI), the Netherlands will continue its partnership with GTRI to secure and remove vulnerable radiological material by contributing $650,000 to the effort. The contribution will support GTRI’s work in Kazakhstan on projects related to the search, removal and physical protection of radiological material.

March 22, 2013

The President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology releases a letter to the President describing six key components the advisory group believes should be central to the Administration’s strategy for addressing climate change. The 9-page “letter report” responds to a November request from the President for advice as the Administration prepares new initiatives on climate change. The six components are: 1) focus on national preparedness for climate change, 2) continue efforts to decarbonize the economy, with emphasis on the electricity sector, 3) level the playing field for clean-energy and energy-efficiency technologies by removing regulatory obstacles, addressing market failures, adjusting tax policies, and providing subsidies when appropriate, 4) sustain research on next-generation clean-energy technologies, 5) take additional steps to establish U.S. leadership on climate change internationally, and 6) conduct an initial Quadrennial Energy Review.

March 22, 2013

The Department Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory announces that engineers and technicians have completed a crucial stage of the $94 million upgrade of the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX), the Laboratory’s major fusion project. The critical task called for sealing and insulating the first quadrant of magnetic field conductors for the NSTX center stack, which forms the heart of the upgrade that will make the device the most advanced fusion facility of its kind on earth.

March 25, 2013

The Department awards a competitive $22 million small business task order to Navarro Research and Engineering Inc. of Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The company will provide engineering and operations technical support services to the DOE Portsmouth Paducah Project Office in Lexington, Kentucky, and the Depleted Uranium Hexafluoride (DUF6) Conversion Project in Paducah, Kentucky, and Portsmouth, Ohio.

March 26, 2013

The Department launches the Clean Energy Manufacturing Initiative (CEMI) focused on growing American manufacturing of clean energy products and boosting U.S. competitiveness through major improvements in manufacturing energy productivity. The initiative includes private sector partnerships, new funding from the Department, and enhanced analysis of the clean energy manufacturing supply chain that will guide DOE’s future funding decisions. The announcement is made at the ribbon cutting of DOE’s Carbon Fiber Technology Facility in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, a new advanced manufacturing facility to reduce the cost of carbon fiber – a critical material for efficient lightweight vehicles, next generation wind turbines, and a wide array of other consumer and industrial products. Later in the day, the Department announces five new innovative research and development projects focused on reducing energy use and costs for U.S. manufacturers.

March 27, 2013

The Department launches an expanded version of its popular America’s Next Top Energy Innovator Program -- which, since 2011, has unleashed the National Laboratories’ unlicensed patents for use by startups looking to build their businesses and bring energy technologies from the lab to the marketplace. The revamped program expands the class of eligible startups to include all companies that are less than five years old, have fewer than 50 employees, and have received less than $5 million in funding since incorporation.

March 28, 2013

The Department’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability releases a report that examines the key risks confronting critical energy infrastructure and ways in which the insurance industry can help manage these risks.

March 28, 2013

The Department announces that the Office of Environmental Management has met a Tri-Party Agreement milestone by completing cleanup of the north portion of the Hanford site’s 300 Area. One mile north of Richland, Washington, adjacent to the Columbia River, 300 Area was the center of Hanford’s radiological research, development and fuel fabrication activities for almost 60 years. More than 150 of 171 surplus buildings in 300 Area have been demolished.

March 31, 2013

The Department’s Los Alamos National Laboratory decommissions Roadrunner, the first supercomputer to break the once-elusive petaflop barrier of one million billion calculations per second. During its five operational years, Roadrunner, part of the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Advanced Simulation and Computing (ASC) program to provide key computer simulations for the Stockpile Stewardship Program, was a workhorse system providing computing power for stewardship of the U.S. nuclear deterrent, and in its early shakedown phase, a wide variety of unclassified science. The IBM system achieved petaflop speed in 2008.

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April 1, 2013

The Department announces the winners of the Apps for Vehicles Challenge. The competition asked app developers and entrepreneurs to demonstrate how the open data available on most vehicles can be used to improve vehicle safety, fuel efficiency and comfort. Announced during the first Energy Datapalooza in October 2012, the competition brought in nearly forty entries, seven of which were selected as finalists. The products developed through the Apps for Vehicles Challenge are made available for download.

April 1, 2013

The Department and its National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) announce that 10 collegiate teams have been selected to participate in its inaugural Collegiate Wind Competition that will take place in the spring of 2014. The Collegiate Wind Competition is a forum for undergraduate college students of multiple disciplines to investigate innovative wind energy concepts; gain experience designing, building, and testing a wind turbine to perform according to a customized market data-derived business plan; and increase their knowledge of wind industry barriers.

April 3, 2013

The Department chooses Mark A. Gabriel to be the new Administrator of the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) in Lakewood, Colorado, one of four Power Marketing Administrations (PMAs) DOE oversees. As WAPA’s Administrator, Gabriel will be responsible for managing the non-profit federal agency, which delivers power from 57 power plants operated by the Bureau of Reclamation, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the International and Water Commission to the western region of the U.S.

April 3, 2013

The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS), a major physics experiment operating on the International Space Station and supported by DOE and fifteen other international partners, announces the most precise measurement to date of the ratio of positrons to electrons in cosmic rays. Measurements of this key ratio may eventually provide the first glimpse into dark matter. The AMS experiment is the world's most precise detector of cosmic rays. It was constructed at universities around the world and assembled at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN).

April 4, 2013

The Department announces it will fund its three Bioenergy Research Centers for an additional five-year period. The three Centers—the BioEnergy Research Center (BESC) led by DOE's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC) led by the University of Wisconsin-Madison in partnership with Michigan State University, and the Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI) led by DOE's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory—were established by DOE’s Office of Science in 2007 as an innovative program to accelerate fundamental research breakthroughs toward the development of advanced, next-generation biofuels.

April 5, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the Czech Republic‘s Nuclear Research Institute announce the successful removal of 68 kilograms (approximately 150 pounds, or enough material for two nuclear weapons) of highly enriched uranium (HEU) from the Nuclear Research Institute in Rez, Czech Republic. The removal was executed in close coordination with the Russian Federation. The HEU from the Czech Republic was securely transported by truck, rail, and ship to Russia, where it will be down blended into low enriched uranium (LEU) for use in power reactors. Unlike HEU, LEU cannot be used to make a nuclear weapon.

April 9, 2013

The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources holds a hearing to consider the nomination of Dr. Ernest Moniz to be Secretary of Energy.

April 10, 2013

Deputy Secretary Poneman details President Obama’s $28.4 billion Fiscal Year 2014 budget request for the Department. The Deputy Secretary emphasizes the President’s continued commitment to an “all-of-the-above” energy strategy that prioritizes investments in innovation, clean energy technologies, and national security. “The United States faces one of the greatest challenges ahead, the opportunity to lead the global clean energy race.  We must continue to out-innovate, out-educate and out-build the rest of the world to meet this challenge,” says the Deputy Secretary. “This budget reflects strong commitments to fiscal responsibility and shared sacrifice, while embracing the President’s all-of-the-above energy strategy which expands both oil and gas production and investments in new clean energy technologies, while advancing our national security.”

April 10, 2013

Director of DOE’s Office of Science William Brinkman presents the details of the Office of Science FY 2014 budget request.

April 11, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) launches a new online state energy portal that gives users interactive access to customized maps and charts of state energy data.

April 11, 2013

The Department’s Chief Financial Officer posts online Fiscal Year 2014 Budget Justification documents to support DOE’s budget request to Congress

April 11, 2013

The Department’s Brookhaven National Laboratory announces the opening of the Interdisciplinary Science Building (ISB), a new world-class research facility. This new hub for energy research at Brookhaven Lab will provide customized laboratories for multidisciplinary research teams.

April 11, 2013

The Department’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory announces that it will field test a system that allows natural gas power plants to use about 20 percent less fuel when the sun is shining by injecting solar energy into natural gas. The system converts natural gas and sunlight into a more energy-rich fuel called syngas, which power plants can burn to make electricity.

April 12, 2013

The Department recognizes the nation’s first commercial enhanced geothermal system (EGS) project to supply electricity to the grid. Based in Churchill County, Nevada, Ormat Technologies’ Desert Peak 2 EGS project has increased power output of its nearby operating geothermal field by nearly 38 percent – providing an additional 1.7 megawatts of power to the grid. Leveraging a $5.4 million Energy Department investment – matched by $2.6 million in private sector funding – the Ormat Desert Peak project is extending the life of previously unproductive geothermal wells.

April 12, 2013

The Department awards two fixed price unit rate Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (ID/IQ) multiple-award contracts for the permanent disposal of Low-Level Waste and Mixed-Low Level Waste to EnergySolutions, LLC, and Waste Control Specialists, LLC. The goal of these contracts is to establish a vehicle that allows DOE sites to place timely, competitive and cost-effective task orders for the permanent disposal of various wastes.

April 15, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) begins the full release of Annual Energy Outlook 2013 (AEO2013), expanding on the AEO2013 Reference case highlights that were issued on December 5, 2012. The release includes a Legislation and Regulations section that discusses evolving legislative and regulatory issues, a Market Trends section that highlights and summarizes selected aspects of the projections for energy markets, and a comparison of AEO2013 with projections from other organizations.

April 15, 2013

The Department’s Office of Science announces that proposals are being accepted for the Innovative and Novel Computational Impact on Theory and Experiment (INCITE) program. INCITE enables transformational advances in science and technology for computationally intensive, large-scale research projects through large allocations of computer time and supporting resources at DOE’s Argonne and Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility (LCF) centers. INCITE will allocate more than 5 billion core-hours on leadership-class supercomputers in 2014.

April 15-16, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the China National Energy Administration (NEA) hold the 8th Joint Coordinating Committee meeting of the 1998 U.S.-China Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Technology (PUNT) Agreement in Beijing, China. Both sides share appreciation for the progress achieved in five PUNT working groups, discuss new issue areas for potential cooperation, and agree on the need for strengthened technical collaborations in nuclear energy technologies, safeguards and security, environment and waste management, nuclear emergency management, and radioactive source security.

April 16, 2013

The Department announces a new dry storage research and development project for the safe and secure storage of used nuclear fuel. The project, to be led by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), will design and demonstrate dry storage cask technology for high burn-up spent nuclear fuels that have been removed from commercial nuclear power plants. The Department will invest $15.8 million over five years, with private industry contributing at least 20 percent of the total project cost.

April 16, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces that its Sequoia supercomputer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has completed its transition to classified computing in support of the Stockpile Stewardship Program, which helps the U.S. ensure the safety, security, and effectiveness of its aging nuclear weapons stockpile without the use of underground testing. The 20 petaflop/s (quadrillion floating point operations per second) IBM BlueGene/Q system is now dedicated exclusively to NNSA’s Advanced Simulation and Computing (ASC) program.

April 16, 2013

The Department and the Alaska Department of Natural Resources sign a Memorandum of Understanding to improve cooperation and collaboration related to unconventional energy resources in the state. Alaska has significant unconventional petroleum and natural gas resources, including both viscous oil and methane hydrate deposits.

April 17, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration announces that its Sequoia supercomputer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has completed its transition to classified computing in support of the Stockpile Stewardship Program, which helps the U.S. ensure the safety, security and effectiveness of its aging nuclear weapons stockpile without the use of underground testing.

April 17-18, 2013

Secretary Chu is co-chair at the fourth Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) meeting in New Delhi, India. Launched three years ago, the CEM is the only regular meeting where energy ministers meet exclusively to discuss how to accelerate the transition to clean energy technologies. The energy ministers and other high-level delegates from the 23 participating governments outline progress made to date under the 13 CEM initiatives and commit to furthering their efforts to accelerate clean energy supply, improve energy efficiency, and expand clean energy access around the world.

April 18, 2013

The Department’s Western Area Power Administration announces that it has partnered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to draft a Wind Energy Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement that will address common regional concerns and environmental elements when evaluating a wind farm interconnection request. The programmatic EIS will analyze impacts and mitigation for each environmental resource and all aspects of wind energy projects, including turbine, transformer, collector line, access road, substation installations and operational and maintenance activities.

April 22, 2013

The Department announces nearly $18 million in four innovative pilot-scale biorefineries in California, Iowa, and Washington that will test renewable biofuels as a domestic alternative to power cars, trucks, and planes that meet military specifications for jet fuel and shipboard diesel. “The innovative biorefinery projects announced today,” says Secretary Chu, “mark an important step toward producing fuels for our American military and the civil aviation industry from renewable resources found right here in the United States.” The pilot-scale biorefinery projects will use a variety of non-food biomass feedstocks, waste-based materials, and algae.

April 22, 2013

Secretary Chu leaves the Department as the longest serving Secretary of Energy. Deputy Secretary Poneman becomes Acting Secretary.

April 23, 2013

Directors of the DOE's Energy Innovation Hubs meet with policymakers on Capitol Hill to discuss the critical research being conducted at the hubs and to answer questions from attendees. At the conclusion of the event, each of the five directors offers their perspective on what a child born today will see in the world in twenty years.

April 23, 2013

The Department’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) sign a memorandum of understanding to perform collaborative research related to airborne emissions and air quality at natural gas drilling sites. As part of a multiagency team, NIOSH and NETL will identify and monitor the potential impact of shale gas production on air quality and greenhouse gas emissions.

April 24, 2013

The Department’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory announces that researchers have designed a low-cost, long-life “flow” battery that could enable solar and wind energy to become major suppliers to the electrical grid. Currently the electrical grid cannot tolerate large and sudden power fluctuations caused by wide swings in sunlight and wind. As solar and wind's combined contributions to an electrical grid approach 20 percent, energy storage systems must be available to smooth out the peaks and valleys of this "intermittent" power – storing excess energy and discharging when input drops. The new flow battery developed by has a simplified, less expensive design that presents a potentially viable solution for large-scale production. The research is a product of the new Joint Center for Energy Storage Research (JCESR), a DOE Energy Innovation Hub, under the direction of DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory, with SLAC as major partner.

April 25, 2013

The Department’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability announces the release of a report on the “Economic Impact of Recovery Act Investments in the Smart Grid.”

April 29, 2013

Students from Mira Loma High School from Sacramento, California, win the 2013 U.S. Department of Energy National Science Bowl in Washington D.C. The championship team in the middle school competition is Creekside Middle School from Carmel, Indiana.

April 29, 2013

The Department and the Denali Commission announce that five Alaska Native communities will receive technical expertise through the Strategic Technical Assistance Response Team (START) program. Building on five technical assistance awards made in May 2012, the projects selected will further accelerate local clean energy and energy efficiency projects that advance energy self-sufficiency and job creation in rural Alaska.

April 29, 2013

The Department announces that its liquid waste cleanup contractor at the Savannah River Site recently surpassed a 2013 contract milestone by processing more than 600,000 gallons of salt waste. Savannah River Remediation’s salt disposition process facilities removed nearly all the radioactive isotopes from the salt waste from large underground storage tanks. The isotopes were moved to the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF), where they were transformed into a molten glass mixture for permanent storage.

April 30, 2013

The New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) presents DOE’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) with its highest recognition for environmental excellence. The NMED, the state regulatory agency, selected WIPP based on continuing environmental achievements, including hazardous waste reduction, energy conservation, and pollution prevention.

April 30, 2013

The Department’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory announces that it has joined with five leading Chinese research institutions to form an international center to advance the development of fusion energy. The new venture, called the Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Fusion Energy and Plasma Science, will promote cross-border lectures and workshops and joint experiments on fusion facilities in China and the U.S.

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May 1, 2013

The Department announces the selection of seven projects for awards totaling approximately $1.4 million to help colleges and universities better prepare the electricity industry workforce of the future. Use of synchrophasor data from Phasor Measurement Units (PMUs) is considered to be a promising tool to monitor modern electric power systems, and identify and respond to deteriorating or abnormal grid conditions more quickly. More than 800 PMUs are being installed at strategic locations across the nation’s transmission system. However, only a limited number of professionals, researchers, and students have the knowledge and expertise to understand and analyze the high-speed, time-synchronized data that will be generated by the deployment of these devices.

May 3, 2013

The Department announces a proposed $120 million mercury water treatment facility for the Y-12 site at Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The facility is a crucial project before DOE can start demolishing old mercury facilities at Y-12 — Alpha 2, Alpha 4, Alpha 5 and Beta 4. The new facility will capture mercury that escapes from beneath the facilities during and after demolition, ensuring it does not travel offsite.

May 7, 2013

Acting Secretary of Energy Poneman announces that 61 scientists from across the nation will receive up to $15.3 million in funding for research as part of DOE’s Early Career Research Program. The effort, now in its fourth year, is designed to bolster the nation's scientific workforce by providing support to exceptional researchers during the crucial early career years, when many scientists do their most formative work.

May 7, 2013

The Department and the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) announce that registration is open for America’s Home Energy Education Challenge, a national student competition created to help families save money by saving energy. Administered by NSTA for DOE, America’s Home Energy Education Challenge inspires student interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), while encouraging elementary and middle school students to make smarter energy choices and save energy at home.

May 7, 2013

Acting Secretary Poneman and Mr. Yoon Sang-jick, Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy of the Republic of Korea, meet at DOE headquarters in Washington, D.C., where they exchange views on cooperation on a wide range of energy priorities and issue a Joint Statement.

May 7, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces the creation of the Office of Program Review and Analysis (PR&A) to serve as an independent broker of strategic information and analysis across NNSA’s programs. PR&A will provide NNSA’s administrator and senior leadership with independent analytical advice regarding strategic and programmatic resource allocations. The creation of the office is designed to improve NNSA’s ability to budget and plan, and to increase accountability for programmatic goals and ideas.

May 7, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration releases its monthly Short-Term Energy Outlook, forecasting that U.S. crude oil production will rise from an average of 7.1million barrels per day (bbl/d) in the first quarter of 2013 to 8.5 million bbl/d in the fourth quarter of 2014. The EIA notes that the “growing supply of domestic light crude oil in the Midcontinent has already prompted both midstream and downstream changes. Pipelines like Seaway that were once used to carry imported oil up from Gulf Coast ports to reach Midwest refiners have been reversed and are moving inland crude oil down to the Gulf, and their capacity is being dramatically expanded. New pipeline infrastructure is also under construction, including the southern portion of the Keystone XL project, which is slated to be in operation by year‐end, and more has been proposed. There have also been major developments in rail transport, where shipments of crude increased dramatically in 2012 compared to 2011. Significant changes in the refining industry are expected over the next few years to accommodate this fast‐growing domestic supply of light‐sweet crude oil.”

May 8, 2013

President Obama attends a meeting with electric utility executives and trade association representatives at the Department’s Forrestal building to discuss lessons learned during the response to Hurricane Sandy, as well as discuss ongoing preparations for the 2013 hurricane season which begins June 1st. The President is joined by senior members of his response team.

May 8, 2013

More than 50 NATO representatives from 23 European countries begin a three-day visit to DOE’s Sandia National Laboratories focusing on the labs’ programs that support extended deterrence to U.S. allies, as well as broader national security programs ranging from homeland security to preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

May 9, 2013

The Obama Administration announces that it is launching competitions to create three new manufacturing innovation institutes with a Federal commitment of $200 million across five Federal agencies – Defense, Energy, Commerce, NASA, and the National Science Foundation. Each institute will serve as a regional hub designed to bridge the gap between basic research and product development, bringing together companies, universities and community colleges, and Federal agencies to co-invest in technology areas that encourage investment and production in the U.S. This type of innovation infrastructure provides a unique ‘teaching factory’ that allows for education and training of students and workers at all levels, while providing the shared assets to help companies, most importantly small manufacturers, access the cutting-edge capabilities and equipment to design, test, and pilot new products and manufacturing processes. The Department will be leading the new institute on “Next Generation Power Electronics Manufacturing”.

May 10, 2013

The Department announces that two DOE employees have been selected as finalists for the Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal from the Partnership for Public Service. Dr. Paul D. Jablonski, Metallurgist at DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory, is selected for his revolutionary development of coronary stent technology. Jablonski developed a stent made of a platinum-chromium alloy, making it visible to an x-ray, and also enhancing the stent’s safety and reliability. Stents were previously made only of bare metal, and some are coated with medication to prevent narrowing of the arteries. This technology is no longer necessary because of Jablonski’s development. Dr. Josh Silverman, Director of DOE’s Office of Sustainability Support, is selected for his dedication to reducing DOE’s greenhouse gas emissions. Silverman identified gaps in air pollution controls at DOE facilities where he initiated steps to prevent the discharge of one of the world’s most potent greenhouse gases, sulfur hexafluoride.

May 10, 2013

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc., hosts a dedication ceremony of its first-of-a-kind, breakthrough carbon capture project at its hydrogen production facilities in Port Arthur, Texas. Supported by a $284 million DOE investment, the company has successfully begun capturing carbon dioxide from industrial operations and is now using that carbon for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) and securely storing it underground.

May 13, 2013

The Department announces the six regional winners of its National Clean Energy Business Plan Competition. The initiative inspires university teams across the country to create new businesses and commercialize promising energy technologies developed at U.S. universities and DOE’s National Laboratories.

May 13, 2013

The Department launches H2USA -- a new public-private partnership focused on advancing hydrogen infrastructure to support more transportation energy options for U.S. consumers, including fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs).  The new partnership brings together automakers, government agencies, gas suppliers, and the hydrogen and fuel cell industries to coordinate research and identify cost-effective solutions to deploy infrastructure that can deliver affordable, clean hydrogen fuel in the U.S. Through H2USA, industry and government partners will focus on identifying actions to encourage early adopters of fuel cell electric vehicles, conduct coordinated technical and market analysis, and evaluate alternative fueling infrastructure that can enable cost reductions and economies of scale.

May 13, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) releases an analysis of state-level energy-related carbon dioxide emissions data from 2000 through 2010. The data shows that the overall size of a state, as well as the available fuels, types of businesses, climate, and population density, play a role in both total and per capita emissions. Between 2000 and 2010, carbon dioxide emissions fell in 32 states and rose in 18 states. However, from 2009 to 2010, only 14 states saw a decrease in emissions, as the U.S. was rebounding from the recession and energy consumption increased in most states, along with emissions.

May 13, 2013

The Department’s Los Alamos National Laboratory announces that for the first time, irradiated low-enriched uranium (LEU) fuel has been recycled and reused for molybdenum-99 (Mo-99) production, with virtually no losses in Mo-99 yields or uranium recovery. This demonstrates the viability of the separation process, as well as the potential for environmentally- and cost-friendly fuel recycling. Technetium-99m (Tc-99m), the most commonly used medical isotope, is derived from the parent isotope Mo-99, predominantly produced from the fission of uranium-235 in highly enriched uranium targets (HEU) in aging foreign reactors. U.S. policy is to minimize and eliminate the use of HEU in civilian applications.

May 14, 2013

The Department announces that a joint-federal-agency 15-day research expedition in the northern Gulf of Mexico has yielded innovative high-resolution seismic data and imagery that will help refine characterizations of large methane hydrate resources in the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf. Gas hydrates are ice-like substances formed when certain gases combine with water at specific pressures and temperatures, and represent a potentially vast future energy resource.

May 14, 2013

The Department’s Bonneville Power Administration, in partnership with Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance and utilities throughout the Pacific Northwest, kick off the Efficiency Exchange NW conference in Portland, OR. The three-day, region-wide event focuses on promoting innovation and new ideas in utility energy efficiency programs.

May 16, 2013

Secretary of Energy nominee Ernest Moniz is confirmed by the full Senate in a vote of 97-0. In a statement, President Obama says that “Dr. Moniz is a world-class scientist with expertise in a range of energy sources and a leader with a proven record of bringing prominent thinkers and innovators together to advance new energy solutions. He also shares my conviction that the United States must lead the world in developing more sustainable sources of energy that create new jobs and new industries, and in responding to the threat of global climate change.”

May 17, 2013

Department announces that it has conditionally authorized a second proposal to export liquefied natural gas (LNG). Freeport LNG Expansion, L.P. and FLNG Liquefaction, LLC (Freeport) to export domestically produced LNG to countries that do not have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the U.S. from the Freeport LNG Terminal on Quintana Island, Texas. Freeport previously received approval to export LNG from this facility to FTA countries on February 10, 2011. The Department granted the first authorization to export LNG to non-FTA countries in May 2011 for the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal in Cameron Parish, Louisiana.

May 20, 2013

The Department announces that it has joined with the U.S. Embassy in Prague and the Czech Republic’s Ministry of Industry and Trade to complete the transfer of 75 kilograms of fluoride salt from DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory to the Czech Nuclear Research Institute Řež for experiments at Řež’s critical test facility. Data resulting from the testing of this coolant material will be instrumental in advancing U.S. and Czech research and development on a new generation of more efficient, high temperature, and passively-safe reactors, such as liquid fluoride salt-cooled high temperature reactors.

May 21, 2013

Dr. Ernest Moniz is sworn in as the nation’s 13th Secretary of Energy by Deputy Secretary Poneman in a ceremony for the DOE’s employees, kicking off a busy first day that includes briefings on energy and national security as well as remarks to the 2013 Energy Efficiency Global Forum. Following his swearing in, Secretary Moniz tells employees that he is honored to be back at the Department and is looking forward to a productive tenure. “I look forward to the progress we will make together in the coming years – advancing the President’s all-of-the-above energy strategy, maintaining the nuclear deterrent and reducing the nuclear danger, promoting American leadership in science and clean energy technology innovation, and cleaning up the legacy of the Cold War,” says Moniz in an email to DOE staff. “I believe we can, and must, commit ourselves to the highest standards of management excellence, delivering results for the American people as efficiently and effectively as possible and enhancing our capacity to succeed in our critical missions.”

May 22, 2013

Secretary Moniz recognizes the Obama Administration’s Better Buildings Challenge partners for the first year’s progress toward the goal of making American commercial and industrial buildings 20 percent more energy efficient by 2020. New data submitted by the Challenge partners shows that they have improved facility energy efficiency by more than 2.5 percent per year on average compared to their baseline years, equal to about $58 million in annual energy savings.

May 22, 2013

Secretary Moniz leads a town hall discussion with DOE employees on his second day in office. During the discussion, the Secretary emphasizes his commitment to advancing the President’s all-of-the-above energy strategy, supporting innovative clean energy technologies and addressing the threat of climate change -- which he described as “an extraordinarily high priority.” Other key focus areas for the Department include maintaining a strong commitment to nuclear security, environmental stewardship, and promoting American leadership in science. Additionally, raising the bar for DOE management excellence, “is something we must pay attention to,” says the Secretary.

May 22, 2013

Tesla Motors repays the entire remaining balance on a $465 million loan from the Department nine years earlier than originally required. “When you’re talking about cutting-edge clean energy technologies, not every investment will succeed,” notes Secretary Moniz, “but today’s repayment is the latest indication that the Energy Department’s portfolio of more than 30 loans is delivering big results for the American economy while costing far less than anticipated. More than 90 percent of loan loss reserve Congress established remains intact, while losses to date represent about 2 percent of the overall $34 billion portfolio. The other 98 percent of the portfolio includes 19 new clean energy power plants that are adding enough solar, wind and geothermal capacity to power a million homes and displace 7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide every year – roughly equal to taking a million cars off the road.”

May 22, 2013

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office issues a report on the effects of a carbon tax on the economy and the environment. The effects on the economy would depend on how the revenues from the tax were used. Options include using the revenues to reduce budget deficits, to decrease existing marginal tax rates, or to offset the costs that a carbon tax would impose on certain groups of people. Because significantly limiting the extent of future global warming would require a concerted effort by countries that are major emitters of greenhouse gases, U.S. efforts to decrease emissions would produce only incremental benefits, in the form of incremental reductions in the expected damage from climate change.

May 23, 2013

Secretary Moniz addresses a select group of 100 women at the White House Leadership Summit on Women, Climate and Energy. He speaks about the challenges facing climate change and the solutions he and President Obama are committed to working on. “The President has already stated his very, very strong commitment to clean energy, a low carbon economy, and addressing the risks of climate change,” the Secretary says. “And frankly, this is the reason I came back.”

May 24, 2013

EcoCAR 2: Plugging In to the Future -- a three-year competition managed by DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory and sponsored by DOE, General Motors (GM), and 30 other government and industry leaders -- names Pennsylvania State University its Year Two winner at the EcoCAR 2013 Competition in San Diego. After a year creating and testing their eco-vehicle designs using technologies such as Hardware-In-the-Loop (HIL) simulation, teams from 15 universities spent the second year of EcoCAR 2 utilizing cutting-edge automotive engineering processes to redesign their Malibu vehicles. Argonne and GM engineers subjected these vehicles to extensive safety inspections and on-road evaluations, similar to those conducted on new GM vehicles. Each car was evaluated on reduced fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions as well as performance, utility and safety.

May 24, 2013

USEC, formerly known as the United States Enrichment Corporation, announces that it will shut down uranium enrichment operations next month at DOE’s Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, begin to reduce its workforce at the plant of more than 1,000, and prepare the plant for return to DOE. USEC leases the plant from DOE. USEC cites “high production costs" due to the energy-intensive gaseous diffusion process used at the plant and "falling prices in the global nuclear fuel market” for the shutdown.

May 28, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Pennsylvania State University, and Texas A&M University announce the first graduates of their new nuclear security program. This graduate-level program, which began in 2011, aims to develop and educate the next generation of personnel with careers in the nuclear and radiological security fields with both domestic and international focus.

May 28, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an Audit Report examining the Office of Environmental Management's (EM) disposition of transuranic waste and its goal, established in 2011, of complete disposition of 90 percent of DOE's legacy transuranic waste by the end of FY 2015. The IG finds that while EM has made progress in meeting its operational disposal goals, it is not on track to meet its goal to dispose of 90 percent of DOE's legacy transuranic waste by the end of FY 2015.

May 31, 2013

Secretary Moniz and Deputy Secretary Poneman attend a briefing at the White House for President Obama by key members of his response team at the start of the 2013 hurricane season.

May 31, 2013

The Department recognizes the nation’s first grid-connected offshore floating wind turbine prototype off the coast of Castine, Maine. Led by the University of Maine, this project represents the first concrete-composite floating platform wind turbine to be deployed in the world. With the support of a $12 million DOE investment over five years, University of Maine and its project partners conducted extensive design, engineering and testing of floating offshore wind turbines, followed by the construction and deployment of its 65-foot-tall VolturnUS prototype. At 1:8th the scale of a commercial installation, this project will collect data to validate and improve floating wind turbine designs, while helping to address technical barriers to greater offshore wind cost reductions.

May 31, 2013

Secretary Moniz announces that DOE has finalized new energy efficiency standards for microwave ovens that will save consumers nearly $3 billion on their energy bills through 2030. These standards will go into effect starting in 2016. The present value of net financial savings to consumers are $3.4 billion over the next 30 years. The White House issues a blog article on the new standards.

June 3, 2013

Secretary Moniz visits DOE facilities in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, to talk about science, innovation, and national security. As his part of this first trip as Secretary, Moniz -- along with Deputy Secretary Poneman -- holds an all hands meeting with employees from the site, meets with National Lab directors from across the Department, and tours some of the facilities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Y-12 National Security Complex.

June 3, 2013

President Obama approves a new Executive Order further tightening U.S. sanctions on Iran, targeting its currency, as part of efforts to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon by raising the cost of Iran’s defiance of the international community. The President submits a message to Congress.

June 3, 2013

Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announces the approval of three major renewable energy projects on federal lands that, when built, are expected to deliver up to 520 megawatts to the electricity grid. The 350-megawatt Midland Solar Energy Project and the 70-megawatt New York Canyon Geothermal Project are located in Nevada, and the 100-megawatt Quartzsite Solar Energy Project is located in Arizona.

June 4, 2013

Secretary Moniz announces five manufacturing research and development projects to support energy efficient lighting products. The projects will focus on reducing manufacturing costs, while continuing to improve the quality and performance of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). The Department’s $10 million investment is matched dollar for dollar by private sector funding.

June 4, 2013

The Department of the Interior announces that its Bureau of Ocean Energy Management will hold the first-ever competitive lease sale for renewable energy on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf. The auction, scheduled to take place on July 31, will offer 164,750 acres offshore Rhode Island and Massachusetts for commercial wind energy leasing.

June 6, 2013

The Department announces that the federal government and over 200 major commercial building sector partners have issued a challenge to U.S. manufacturers to build wireless sub-meters that cost less than $100 apiece. Wireless sub meter, which typically cost about $1,000 per installation, could be installed at various electrical panels throughout a building to give a more detailed picture of where the electricity is being used, helping to identify savings. At least 18 manufacturers have agreed to take up the challenge.

June 7, 2013

President Obama signs a Presidential Memorandum with the intent of transforming the Nation's electric grid through improved siting, permitting, and review. The memorandum directs federal agencies to create an integrated pre-application process across the Federal government to help identify and address issues before the formal permit application process begins, and streamline the coordination of permitting processes across the federal, state, and tribal governments. The memorandum also directs agencies to identify and improve the use of energy corridors on federal lands that are most suitable for siting electric transmission projects, to help expedite permitting while improving environmental and community outcomes. Secretary Moniz co-authors an article posted on the White House and Energy blogs.

June 7, 2013

The staff of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) submits to the commissioners a proposed draft “waste confidence rule” on the temporary storage of spent nuclear fuel after cessation of reactor operation. The proposed rule, prepared in response to a June 2012 federal court finding that the NRC had not adequately assessed the risks of storing spent fuel at reactor sites, indicates that “it is feasible to have a repository within 60 years of the end of the licensed life for operation of any reactor. This timeframe is consistent with . . . [DOE’s] goal of having a repository sited, licensed, constructed, and opened by 2048.”

June 8, 2013

President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping, meeting in Rancho Mirage, California, agree on a new step to confront global climate change. For the first time, the U.S. and China will work together and with other countries to use the expertise and institutions of the Montreal Protocol to phase down the consumption and production of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), among other forms of multilateral cooperation. A global phase down of HFCs could potentially reduce some 90 gigatons of CO2 equivalent by 2050, equal to roughly two years worth of current global greenhouse gas emissions.

June 10, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) releases a new report, Technically Recoverable Shale Oil and Shale Gas Resources, which estimates that shale oil and shale gas resources represent 10% of the world's crude oil and 32% of the world's natural gas technically recoverable resources.

June 11, 2013

The Department launches eGallon – a quick and simple way for consumers to compare the costs of fueling electric vehicles vs. driving on gasoline.  The current national average eGallon price is about $1.14, meaning that a typical electric vehicle could travel as far on $1.14 worth of electricity as a similar vehicle could travel on a gallon of gasoline. Consumers can see the latest eGallon price for their state and compare it to the price of gasoline.

June 11, 2013

The Department’s Brookhaven National Laboratory announces that scientists have discovered a process of creating uniquely structured gold-indium nanoparticles that combine high stability, great catalytic potential, and a simple synthesis process. The new nanostructures might enhance many different commercial and industrial processes, including acting as an efficient material for catalytic converters in cars.

June 11, 2012

The Department’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory announces that its Vulcan supercomputer at is now available for collaborative work with industry and research universities to advance science and accelerate technological innovation.

June 12, 2013

The Department announces that it has joined with the U.S. Embassy in Prague and the Czech Republic’s Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports to sign an agreement that establishes a joint Civil Nuclear Cooperation Center in Prague. The creation of the Center fulfills the commitment made by President Obama and Czech Prime Minister Nečas in October 2011 to establish such a Center to facilitate and coordinate joint activities and support regional initiatives in the fields of nuclear energy, nuclear security, and nuclear non-proliferation.

June 12, 2013

SiNode Systems from Northwestern University wins DOE’s 2013 National Clean Energy Business Plan Competition. The competition, in its second year, is part of President Obama’s Startup America Initiative that works to encourage and accelerate high-growth entrepreneurship by inspiring university teams across the country through business opportunities in clean energy. SiNode developed an advanced anode technology with the potential to dramatically increase the performance of batteries -- impacting everything from cell phones to electric vehicles. SiNode is awarded more than $100,000 in cash and services (like technical, marketing, and legal assistance), provided by the competition’s sponsors.

June 12, 2013

The Department’s Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E) and the California Energy Commission sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to collaborate on energy research projects. The MOU, the first-ever between ARPA-E and a state agency, establishes a framework for collaboration on ARPA-E and state energy research and demonstration programs and projects.

June 13, 2013

The Department announces that it will partner with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, City of Hoboken, and Public Service Electric & Gas Company (PSE&G) to help assess and develop, in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, strategies for improving the reliability and resiliency of the local electric grid in Hoboken. The collaboration will help Hoboken in its efforts to rebuild and upgrade its electricity infrastructure by delivering a strategic design that identifies priority energy needs and energy system functions for various outage durations, evaluates potential system improvements, and estimates cost.

June 13, 2013

The Department’s Office of the General Counsel announces recently resolved enforcement actions against thirty-nine companies for failure to submit the required certification reports that their covered products or equipment comply with federal energy and water conservation standards. DOE assessed civil penalties averaging about $8,000 per manufacturer for a wide variety of products, including lighting products, home appliances, and commercial walk-in cooler/freezer components. As part of each settlement, the manufacturer must submit the required certification reports, which includes a certification that the products have been tested in accordance with the DOE test procedure and that the products meet the applicable standard(s).

June 17, 2013

Secretary Moniz speaks at an event welcoming the arrival of the solar-powered Solar Impulse plane at Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C. The Secretary highlights the rapid expansion of the solar industry in the U.S. over the past four years. Solar Impulse is the first airplane in history to harness the power of the sun to fly day and night without the use of fuel.

June 17-18, 2013

The Group of Eight (G-8) leaders meet at Lough Erne, Northern Ireland. President Obama meets separately with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and among other issues the two discuss nuclear security and proliferation. In a communique covering a broad array of issues, the G-8 leaders affirm their commitment to addressing climate change.

June 17-18, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration hosts its 2013 EIA Energy Conference in Washington, DC. More than 925 “thought leaders” from industry, government, and academia discuss current and future challenges facing domestic and international energy markets and policymakers. Secretary Moniz is a keynote speaker.

June 18, 2013

The Department announces that 6 million tons of uranium mill tailings have been shipped from Moab, Utah, under the Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project to an engineered disposal cell near Crescent Junction, Utah. The shipments mark continued progress toward relocating the 16-million-ton uranium mill tailings pile away from the Colorado River. The tailings are transported by rail in sealed metal containers. The tailings are placed in a DOE-constructed, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission-approved disposal cell and capped with a nine-foot-thick, multi-layered cover composed of native soils and rock.

June 19, 2013

President Obama, in a speech at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, announces new guidance on the nuclear weapons employment strategy of the U.S. “After a comprehensive review,” says the President, “I’ve determined that we can ensure the security of America and our allies, and maintain a strong and credible strategic deterrent, while reducing our deployed strategic nuclear weapons by up to one-third. And I intend to seek negotiated cuts with Russia to move beyond Cold War nuclear postures. At the same time, we’ll work with our NATO allies to seek bold reductions in U.S. and Russian tactical weapons in Europe.  And we can forge a new international framework for peaceful nuclear power, and reject the nuclear weaponization that North Korea and Iran may be seeking.”

June 19, 2013

Secretary Moniz visits DOE’s Hanford site where he meets with site employees, tribal leaders, and local elected officials. He also receives updates during tours of the Plutonium Finishing Plant, 200 West Pump and Treat System, tank farms, and the Waste Treatment Plant. “It was striking to see the tremendous progress that has been made in the cleanup,” the Secretary says. “The changes at the site and in the local communities are undeniable and impressive,”

June 20, 2013

The Department and DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) announce the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) in Golden, Colorado, as the latest Department user facility and the only one in the nation focused on utility-scale clean energy grid integration. Located at NREL’s campus in Golden, Colorado, the 182,500-square-foot ESIF will help both public and private sector researchers scale-up promising clean energy technologies – from solar modules and wind turbines to electric vehicles and efficient, interactive home appliances – and test how they interact with each other and the grid at utility-scale. ESIF will house more than 15 experimental laboratories and several outdoor test beds, including an interactive hardware-in-the-loop system that lets researchers and manufacturers test their products at full power and real grid load levels. The facility will also feature a petascale supercomputer that can support large-scale modeling and simulation at one quadrillion operations per second.

June 20, 2013

The Department marks the 20^th anniversary of its Clean Cities program—working with communities to cut petroleum use in transportation—by hosting a Google+ Hangout. Through nearly 100 community-based coalitions, Clean Cities has advanced the deployment of alternative fuels, fuel economy improvements, and new vehicle technologies across the country.

June 20, 2013

Secretary Moniz receives a letter from Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval regarding his opposition to the disposal of Consolidated Edison Uranium Solidification Project (uranium-233) waste material at DOE’s Nevada National Security Site.

June 20, 2013

The National Research Council issues a report, done at the request of Congress, evaluating the most important tax provisions that affect carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions and to estimate the magnitude of the effects. Using energy economic models based on the 2011 U.S. tax code, the report finds that the combined effect of energy-related tax subsidies on greenhouse gas emissions is minimal and could be negative or positive. Provisions subsidizing renewable electricity reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while those for ethanol and other biofuels may have slightly increased greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, the report examines the broader implications of tax provisions and climate change policy and concludes that tax policies can make a substantial contribution to meeting the nation's climate change objectives, but the current approaches will not accomplish that.  While the report does not make any recommendations about specific changes to the tax code, it says that policies that target emissions directly, such as carbon taxes or tradable emissions allowances, would be the most effective and efficient ways of reducing greenhouse gases.

June 21, 2013

President Obama announces the appointment of Caroline Atkinson to be Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics, replacing Michael Froman. She will serve as the President’s senior international economic advisor, coordinating the policy-making process and driving the execution of policy on international economic affairs, including financial, trade and investment, development, energy, and environmental issues.

June 24, 2013

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces that it has monitored the elimination of more than 475 metric tons (MT) of Russian highly enriched uranium (HEU) under a landmark nuclear nonproliferation program, commonly known as Megatons to Megawatts. With the 475 MT HEU milestone, deliveries under the U.S.-Russia HEU Purchase Agreement of low enriched uranium (LEU) produced from Russian HEU are 95 percent complete, and HEU roughly equivalent to 19,000 nuclear weapons has been permanently eliminated.

June 25, 2013

President Obama, in a major address at Georgetown University on climate change, lays out a comprehensive plan to reduce greenhouse gas pollution in America, prepare the U.S. for the impacts of climate change, and lead global efforts to fight it. “The question is not whether we need to act,” declares the President, “the question now is whether we will have the courage to act before it’s too late.” The premise of the plan is that climate change is unequivocal, its primary cause is greenhouse gas pollution from burning fossil fuels, and it is threatening the health of our communities, families, and economy. The plan lays out dozens of actions and commitments that will set the Nation on a path to “lead the world in a coordinated assault on a changing climate,” including steps to use less dirty energy, use more clean energy, and waste less energy overall. It also includes numerous measures to make America’s cities, towns, and communities more resilient to the increasingly frequent and severe extreme weather events that come with climate change, and commitments to engage with countries around the world to address climate change as a global challenge.

June 26, 2013

The Nuclear Energy and Nuclear Security Working Group of the U.S. - Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission meet in St. Petersburg, Russia. Co-Chairs Deputy Secretary Poneman and General Director of Rosatom State Corporation on Nuclear Energy S.V. Kiriyenko issue a Joint Statement discussing commercial cooperation in nuclear energy, cooperation in the area of science and innovation, HEU minimization, plutonium disposition, and nuclear security, and restructuring the group to increase its efficiency.

June 26, 2013

The White House, following up on the launch of President Obama’s climate change plan the previous day, releases “state-by-state reports” detailing the impacts of extreme weather and pollution across the country. The reports also detail how the plan will help cut carbon pollution and prepare states for the impacts of climate change that can't be avoided. The White House also responds to criticism of the plan, noting that “some of the nation’s biggest polluters are attacking the President’s plan to cut carbon pollution and meet the climate change challenge, and they’re recycling the same tired and empty arguments that we’ve heard time and time again.”

June 26, 2013

Adam Sieminski, Administrator of DOE's Energy Information Administration (EIA), testifies before the Subcommittee on Energy and Power of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program.

June 27, 2013

The White House releases a list of selected media comments on President Obama’s climate change plan. The White House also releases statements in support of the plan made by business leaders “across a broad array of industries.”

June 27, 2013

The Department announces $3.5 million for four advanced nuclear reactor projects that go beyond traditional light water designs. The projects -- led by General Atomics, GE Hitachi, Gen4 Energy and Westinghouse -- will address key technical challenges to designing, building, and operating the next generation of nuclear reactors.

June 27, 2013

Secretary Moniz announces a new public-private partnership to strengthen protection of the nation’s oil and natural gas infrastructure from cyber attacks. In collaboration with industry experts, the Department of Homeland Security, and other stakeholders, the Department will create a tool that allows owners and operators to assess their cybersecurity capabilities and prioritize their actions and investments to improve cybersecurity.

June 27, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces the selection of six new centers of excellence whose primary focus will be on the emerging field of predictive science. Six universities were selected either as a Multidisciplinary Simulation Center (MSC) or as a Single-Discipline Center (SDC). The MSCs will receive $3.2 million and the SDCs will receive $1.6 million each year for five years. Predictive science is the application of verified and validated computational simulations to predict the behavior of complex systems where routine experiments are not feasible. The selected centers will focus on unclassified applications of interest to NNSA and its national laboratories.

June 27, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) announce the development of a novel method for analyzing airborne radiological monitoring data. This new method has been used to perform a detailed study of survey data taken by the NNSA and JAEA in the months following the March 2011 radiological incident at the stricken Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Japan.

June 27-29, 2013

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) sponsors an International Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Power in the 21st Century in St. Petersburg, Russia. The conference aims to discuss, at a high ministerial and international experts’ level, the role and viability of nuclear power in sustainable development, including climate change mitigation, and in meeting the growing global requirements for electricity; and the status and prospects of nuclear power for the future, including the importance of nuclear safety and security as necessary prerequisites for nuclear power, as well as different technical aspects involved in the development of nuclear power. Deputy Secretary Poneman delivers the U.S. statement on the opening day of the conference.

June 28, 2013

The Department's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy host a webinar on the energy efficiency aspects of President Obama's Climate Action Plan.

June 28, 2013

Mark Gabriel, administrator of DOE’s Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) forwards to Secretary Moniz WAPA’s Implementation Plan for the Joint Outreach Team (JOT) Recommendations. The plan is in response to Secretary Chu’s March 1, 2013, request to prioritize various tasks, establish completion expectations, and identify areas where collaboration between WAPA and other areas of DOE would be useful to implement the JOT Recommendations.

June 28, 2013

The National Research Council issues a report recommending that the U.S. establish a National Sustainability Policy and take additional steps to encourage federal agencies to collaborate on sustainability challenges that demand the expertise of many agencies. The government is generally not organized to deal with the complex, long-term nature of sustainability challenges, the report says. Statutes and government culture encourage agencies to focus on a single area -- energy, water, or health, for example -- with little attention to how areas affect one another. This “stovepipe” or “silo” effect makes it difficult to address issues that cut across agency boundaries. The report identifies four challenges of national importance that should be top priorities, one of which is the connections among energy, food, and water.

June 29, 2013

President Obama, in his weekly address, discusses his climate change plan announced on June 25. “The national Climate Action Plan I unveiled,” the President says, “will cut carbon pollution, protect our country from the impacts of climate change, and lead the world in a coordinated assault on a changing climate.”

June 30, 2013

President Obama, in remarks at the University of Cape Town, announces Power Africa—an initiative to double the number of people with access to power in Sub-Saharan Africa. The President commits $7 billion of U.S. government resources to the new initiative in partnership with a private sector commitment of more than $9 billion. “We’ll reach more households not just in cities, but in villages and on farms,” the President notes. “We’ll expand access for those who live currently off the power grid. And we’ll support clean energy to protect our planet and combat climate change.”

July 1, 2013

Secretary Moniz delivers the U.S. Statement to the International Atomic Energy Agency International Conference on Nuclear Security in Vienna. The Secretary begins by noting that President Obama has given major speeches on two of the world’s greatest challenges, in Berlin on nuclear security and in Washington on climate change. “These topics are linked by more than timing,” declares Secretary Moniz, “nuclear energy is a key part of addressing climate change, and ensuring nuclear security is integral to the expansion of carbon-free nuclear generation.”

July 1, 2013

The Department announces four research and development projects to bring next generation biofuels on line faster and drive down the cost of producing gasoline, diesel, and jet fuels from biomass. The projects – located in Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah and Wisconsin – represent a DOE investment of $13 million.

July 1, 2013

The Department awards a $4.2 million, five-year cooperative agreement to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Denver, Colorado, to continue their partnership with DOE to provide state legislators, legislative staff, and tribal government leaders with information about policies and programs of DOE’s Office of Environmental Management, Office of Indian Energy, and Office of Nuclear Energy.

July 1, 2013

The Department announces that it has settled civil penalty actions it initiated against nine companies for the manufacture and sale in the U.S. of products that fail to meet federal energy conservation standards. The covered consumer products and commercial/industrial equipment found in violation included automatic commercial ice makers, distribution transformers, external power supplies, showerheads, and lighting products. The companies ceased all sales within the U.S. of the products that violated federal energy conservation standards.

July 1, 2013

The Department’s Argonne National Laboratory dedicates its new Mira supercomputer. Mira, an IBM Blue Gene/Q system, consists of 48 racks of computers, 786,432 processors, and 768 terabytes of memory and is capable of 10 quadrillion calculations per second – making it the fifth-fastest supercomputer in the world. Mira is 20 times faster than its IBM Blue Gene/P predecessor at the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility, Intrepid, which was ranked third in the world when it was installed in 2008.

July 2, 2013

President Obama visits the Ubungo Symbion Power Plant in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, to highlight the new Power Africa initiative. The plant, the President says in his remarks, “represents the kind of public-private partnership that we want to replicate all across the continent.”

July 2, 2013

Secretary Moniz, in Vienna, tours the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Organization (CTBTO), an organization responsible for monitoring globally for underground testing of nuclear explosions. This state-of-the-art facility represents the global cooperation necessary to succeed at this important mission. DOE plays an integral role in its success through its National Laboratories.

July 2, 2013                                                        

The Department releases a draft of the Advanced Fossil Energy Projects solicitation, authorized by Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 through Section 1703 of the Loan Guarantee Program for innovative and advanced fossil energy projects and facilities that substantially reduce greenhouse gas and other air pollution. The solicitation will support projects – such as advanced resource development, carbon capture, low-carbon power systems, and efficiency improvements – that reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, methane, and other greenhouse gas pollution. The Department will make available up to $8 billion in loan guarantee authority. The draft solicitation will be open for comments from industry, stakeholders, and the public until early September.

July 2, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam’s Ministry of Science and Technology, in a joint operation with the Russian Federation, announce the successful removal of 11 kilograms of highly enriched uranium (HEU) from the Dalat Nuclear Research Institute in Dalat, Vietnam. The HEU was securely transported by truck from the Dalat Nuclear Research Institute to a military airport outside of Ho Chi Minh City and then was flown by a Russian An-124 cargo plane to Russia, where it will be downblended into low enriched uranium (LEU) for use in power reactors.

July 3, 2012

The Department launches a website for the Asset Revitalization Initiative (ARI), a DOE-wide effort to advance the beneficial reuse of its unique and diverse mix of assets, including land, facilities, infrastructure, equipment, technologies, natural resources, and a highly skilled workforce.

July 5, 2013

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury, after collaborating with DOE and considering comments from stakeholders, issue a final rule that allows CBP to refuse admission into the customs territory of the U.S. for sale within the U.S. of covered products that fail to meet an applicable DOE energy conservation standard. The notice also allows CBP to refuse admission of covered products that fail to comply with the applicable Federal Trade Commission labeling requirement.

July 6, 2013

A freight train carrying crude oil from the North Dakota oil fields derails in the town of Lac-Mégantic in the Canadian province of Quebec, causing fire and explosions, killing 47 people, and destroying most of the downtown area. The accident heightens the debate as to whether it is safer to ship oil by rail or by pipeline.

July 8, 2013

Researchers at ten of DOE's national laboratories and the Y-12 National Security Complex have won 37 of the 100 awards given out this year by R&D Magazine for the most outstanding technology developments of 2012. The awards are presented annually in recognition of exceptional new products, processes, materials, or software that were developed throughout the world and introduced into the market the previous year. Office of Science labs earn 18 awards. Labs and facilities associated with DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration garner 11 awards.

July 9, 2013

The Department announces that its contractors at the Hanford site have disposed of 15 million tons of contaminated material at the Environmental Restoration Disposal Facility since the facility began operations in 1996. Removing contaminated material and providing for its safe disposal prevents contaminants from reaching the groundwater and the Columbia River.

July 9, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) launches a new website tool to keep users informed during hurricane season. The site provides interactive maps that combine real-time data feeds from the National Hurricane Center with more than 20 map layers showing the nation's energy infrastructure and resources.

July 10, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an Audit Report examining the safety aspects of DOE’s storing of 34 metric tons of heavy metal spent nuclear fuel generated by weapons and research programs and recovered through nonproliferation programs in two wet storage basins located at the Savannah River Site and the Idaho National Laboratory. The IG finds that program officials had analyzed the risks related to storage, documented these analyses, and concluded that the continued use of the wet storage facilities was appropriate.

July 10-11, 2013

Secretary Moniz and Minister Yu Guangzhou of the People’s Republic of China’s General Administration of China Customs (GACC) at the annual U.S.–China Strategic and Economic Dialogue in Washington sign an agreement to renew cooperative efforts to deter, detect, and interdict the illicit smuggling of special nuclear and other radiological materials. The agreement makes it possible for DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Second Line of Defense program to work with the GACC on extending radiation detection systems to high-priority seaports and other ports of entry. The agreement also enables NNSA and GACC to enhance the professionalism and technical skills of the customs officers operating these systems. This specialized equipment is designed to scan cargo containers for dangerous nuclear and radiological materials.

July 11, 2013

The Department releases  a report assessing the vulnerabilities of America’s critical energy and electricity infrastructure to the impacts of climate change. The report identifies critical issues, including power-plant disruptions due to drought and the disruption of fuel supplies during severe storms. It also suggests potential opportunities that would make our energy infrastructure more resilient to these risks.

July 11, 2013

The Department awards a task order in support of the Los Alamos National Laboratory Legacy Waste Project to Waste Control Specialists of Andrews, Texas, under the Environmental Management Low-Level and Mixed Low-Level Waste Disposal Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (ID/IQ) Master Contract. The award is a firm, fixed-price task order, based on pre-established rates with a $4.09 million value and has a one-year performance period.

July 11, 2013

The Department’s Bonneville Power Administration, other federal agencies, and their partners in a draft report outline five years of accomplishments in improvements to hydrosystem operations and facilities, habitat rehabilitation, and hatchery reforms to protect and benefit Columbia and Snake River fish.

July 11, 2013

The Department’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) announces that the U.S. LHC Accelerator Program (LARP) has successfully tested a powerful superconducting quadrupole magnet that will play a key role in developing a new beam focusing system for CERN’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC). This advanced system, together with other major upgrades to be implemented over the next decade, will allow the LHC to produce 10 times more high-energy collisions than it was originally designed for. LARP is a collaboration among DOE’s Brookhaven National Laboratory, Fermilab, LBNL, and the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, working in close partnership with CERN.

July 12, 2013

The Department awards a contract for Environmental Technical Services to Restoration Services Inc. of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, for support services at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant located near Piketon, Ohio. The contract has an approximate value of $43 million, with a three-year base performance period plus one two-year option period.

July 15, 2013

The Department’s Savannah River National Laboratory announces the signing of an agreement with Nuclear Protection Products, a Norwegian manufacturer, on a possible next generation of radioactive material packaging systems for the world’s nuclear materials.

July 15, 2013

The Department announces that its contractor, CH2M HILL Plateau Remediation Company, has exceeded this year’s goal for treating 1.4 billion gallons of contaminated groundwater at the Hanford Site in Washington State. To date, Hanford contractors have treated approximately 7.8 billion gallons of groundwater and removed approximately 55 tons of contaminants, including nitrate, carbon tetrachloride, hexavalent chromium, uranium, and technetium-99.

July 16, 2013

The Department’s Inspector General (IG) issues a Management Alert regarding alleged prohibited personnel practices at DOE’s Bonneville Power Administration (BPA). The IG concludes that BPA engaged in a number of prohibited personnel practices. Notably, BPA’s hiring practices appeared to have effectively disadvantaged veterans and other applicants. Equally concerning and the primary reason for the urgency of the management alert, BPA apparently proposed or recently executed a number of personnel actions against certain employees who cooperated with the IG’s review. The IG notes that DOE’s “comments were responsive to our recommendations. Notably, the Department initiated immediate corrective actions.” The BPA administrator and chief operating officer are placed on administrative leave. Deputy Administrator Elliot Mainzer is appointed acting administrator.

July 16, 2013

The Department announces that up to $30 million from the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) will be made available for a new program that will engage scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs to develop new technologies that deliver cost-effective solar energy when the sun is not shining. The new program entitled Full-Spectrum Optimized Conversion and Utilization of Sunlight (FOCUS) seeks to develop two distinct technology options to deliver low-cost, high-efficiency solar energy on demand, specifically: (1) new hybrid solar energy converters and (2) new hybrid energy storage systems.

July 16, 2013

Adam Sieminski, Administrator of DOE's Energy Information Administration (EIA), testifies before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on the U.S. petroleum supply system.

July 16, 2013

The Department, on the 68^th anniversary of the Trinity test, launches The Manhattan Project: Resources, a web-based, joint collaboration between the Department’s Office of Classification and Office of History and Heritage Resources. The site is designed to disseminate information and documentation on the Manhattan Project to a broad audience including scholars, students, and the general public.

July 17, 2013

The Department awards nearly $5 million to undergraduate and graduate students pursuing nuclear engineering and science degrees. The awards are intended to help replace an anticipated shortage of knowledgeable workers in the U.S. electric power industry, which - according to industry estimates - will have to replace nearly 100,000 workers by 2015. In the next few years, about 30 percent of nuclear energy industry workers, many of whom joined the field in the 1960s and 1970s, will be eligible for retirement.

July 17, 2013

The Department announces an award of $10 million for six projects to help small commercial buildings save money by saving energy. These small commercial buildings are less than 50,000 square feet in size and include schools, churches, strip malls, restaurants, and grocery stores. The six projects are aimed at developing user-friendly tools and resources that can be easily deployed at any small building. The Department’s $10 million investment across these six projects will be matched by at least $14 million in private sector funding.

July 18, 2013

Secretary Moniz, in a Town Hall Forum and follow-up email to DOE employees, announces “a reorganization of the Department’s management structure that is designed to achieve several of our key priorities and those of the President. Successful implementation of the President’s Climate Action Plan, ‘all of the above’ energy strategy and nuclear security agenda require the appropriate alignment of management functions and strengthened management throughout the agency.” Changes include the establishment of an Office of the Under Secretary for Management and Performance bringing together DOE’s primary support organizations, as well as the Office of Environmental Management and Office of Legacy Management. In addition, a new organizational unit, the National Laboratory Operations Board, will report to the Office of the Under Secretary for Management and Performance. Also, the current position of Under Secretary for Science is expanded to encompass both science and energy. The resulting Office of the Under Secretary for Science and Energy will manage the offices of Science, Fossil Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Nuclear Energy, Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability, Indian Energy, and Technology Transfer Coordinator. In order to better address important policy issues that affect a number of programs across DOE, four Secretarial Councils are established: an Energy Council, a National Laboratory Policy Council, a revised Credit Review Board, and a Cyber Security Council. Lastly, the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (SEAB) is reactivated and restructured, with the SEAB having four standing sub-committees to address each of the major DOE mission areas.

July 18, 2013

President Obama nominates Elizabeth Robinson as under secretary of management and performance. Dr. Robinson currently is the Chief Financial Officer at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

July 18, 2013

Secretary Moniz and Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval discuss waste issues at DOE’s Nevada National Security Site and proposed uranium-233 shipments to Nevada. Governor Sandoval describes the conversation as “frank and blunt.”

July 18, 2013

The Department, the European Commission, and DOE’s Argonne National Lab celebrate the launch of the Electric Vehicle-Smart Grid Interoperability Center. The center, located at Argonne, will work to ensure that vehicles, charging stations, communications, and networking systems work in unison with the electric grid. The work at Argonne will be complemented by the launch of a European Interoperability Center by the European Commission's Joint Research Center at facilities in Ispra, Italy, and Petten, Netherlands, in 2014.

July 19, 2013

The Department releases its most recent pricing data showing the low cost of fueling on electricity. The eGallon, a quick and simple way for consumers to compare the costs of fueling electric vehicles vs. driving on gasoline, rose slightly to $1.18 from $1.14 in the latest monthly numbers, but remains far below the $3.49 cost of a gallon of gasoline. Plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) sales tripled from about 17,000 in 2011 to about 52,000 in 2012. During the first six months of 2013, Americans bought over 40,000 PEVs, more than twice as many sold during the same period in 2012.

July 22, 2013

The Department announces that a unique groundwater treatment   system, a permeable treatment wall, has significantly reduced the presence of a contaminant at the West Valley Demonstration Project. The wall has decreased the concentration of the contaminant strontium-90 in the groundwater by 77 percent since the wall began operating in late 2010. The wall, built at a cost of $6.5 million, is an approximately 850-foot-long trench that contains nearly 2,000 metric tons of zeolite, a naturally occurring mineral formed from volcanic ash. The zeolite strips the strontium-90 from the groundwater passing through the wall.

July 23, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces a collaboration with the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) to provide mobile radiation detection equipment to countries in Latin America, South East Asia, and Africa. Under the agreement, New Zealand’s MFAT and NNSA’s Second Line of Defense Program (SLD) will jointly select specific partner countries that are both strategic to the shared global mission to receive mobile detection equipment and associated training through the SLD program. In addition to the equipment, SLD and MFAT will collaborate in the planning and delivery of associated workshops and exercises.

July 24, 2013

Secretary Moniz and Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Toshimitsu Motegi meet in Washington, DC, and issue a Joint Statement on energy cooperation, particularly on energy security matters, civil nuclear energy, and clean energy technology research and development.

July 24, 2013

Deputy Secretary Poneman and DOE Inspector General Gregory Friedman testify on DOE reorganization plans before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.

July 24, 2013

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) in a report highlights three of the “most persistent management challenges” facing DOE: 1) The Office of Environmental Management and the National Nuclear Security Administration continue to face challenges managing major projects and programs, which have incurred significant cost increases and schedule delays. 2) Reports about the July 2012 security breach at the Y-12 National Security Complex identified numerous, long-standing and systemic security issues across the nuclear security enterprise and significant safety problems at DOE sites that have not been fully addressed. 3) GAO has reported that DOE does not have reliable enterprise-wide management data needed to, among other things, prepare its budget requests, identify the costs of its activities, and ensure the validity of its cost estimates.

July 24, 2013

The Department’s Bonneville Power Administration adopts a 9 percent average wholesale power rate increase and an 11 percent average transmission rate increase. The transmission rate increase is the first in six years. The new rates support needed improvements to ensure the region’s federal hydropower and transmission systems can continue to reliably deliver carbon-free, affordable power to Northwest homes and businesses.

July 25, 2013

The Department's Energy Information Administration (EIA) releases its International Energy Outlook 2013. The EIA projects that world energy consumption will grow by 56 percent between 2010 and 2040. “Rising prosperity in China and India is a major factor in the outlook for global energy demand,” says EIA Administrator Adam Sieminski. “These two countries combined account for half the world's total increase in energy use through 2040.” Renewable energy and nuclear power are the world's fastest-growing energy sources, each increasing by 2.5 percent per year. However, fossil fuels continue to supply almost 80 percent of world energy use through 2040. Natural gas is the fastest-growing fossil fuel in the outlook.

July 26, 2013

The 45-ton, 50-foot-wide Muon g-2 electromagnet ring arrives at DOE’s Fermilab after traversing for 35 days over 3,200 miles by land and sea from the Brookhaven National Laboratory. The one-of-a-kind ring, made of steel, aluminum and superconducting wire, was built for the previous g-2 experiment at Brookhaven. Muon g-2 is an Intensity Frontier experiment that will allow researchers to peer into the subatomic world to search for undiscovered particles that may be hiding in the vacuum.

July 29, 2013

Secretary Moniz dedicates a new supercomputer—one of the world’s fastest and most energy efficient—at the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). The high-performance computer for energy and the environment is not only one of the top 100 supercomputers in the world, but it is also one of the most energy efficient for its size. The supercomputer is a 503 TFlops (trillion floating-point operations per second) computer that enables researchers to apply complex model simulations for advanced energy and environmental technology development. This is a unique tool tailored for engineering calculations in support of fossil energy research. In remarks, the Secretary notes that the efforts underway at NETL “are an important part of a much larger portfolio of clean fossil fuel technologies across the Department of Energy and across the country.” He states that since President Obama took office DOE “has invested more than $6 billion to clean coal technologies - particularly in carbon capture, utilization, and storage – helping to ensure that fossil energy use is cleaner, safer, and more sustainable.”

July 29, 2013

The Department announces that it has extracted 200 million gallons of contaminated ground water from the Moab site in Utah as part of the Moab Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project. This has prevented more than 785,000 pounds of ammonia and almost 3,900 pounds of uranium from reaching the Colorado River. Extracted ground water is pumped to a lined 4-acre pond on top of the tailings pile where it is sent to forced-air evaporators.

July 30, 2013

The Department announces that the Hanford site’s Environmental Restoration Disposal Facility (ERDF)—a massive landfill for low-level radioactive and hazardous waste— has achieved a major cleanup milestone with the disposal of 15 million tons of contaminated soil, demolition debris, and solid waste from cleanup across the site. Disposal operations began in 1996.

July 31, 2013

Secretary Moniz testifies on DOE’s strategy for the management and disposal of used nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy.

July 31, 2013

The Department recognizes the nation’s first commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol production at INEOS Bio’s Indian River BioEnergy Center in Vero Beach, Florida. Developed through a joint venture between INEOS Bio and New Planet Energy, the project uses a unique hybrid of gasification and fermentation technology – originally developed with DOE support starting in the 1990’s – to convert wood scraps, grass clippings and other waste materials into transportation fuels as well as energy for heat and power. Inn 2009, the INEOS Bio-New Planet Energy joint venture was awarded a $50 million DOE grant to design, construct, commission, and operate the Indian River BioEnergy Center. The total project cost $130 million.

July 31, 2013

The Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management holds the nation's first-ever competitive lease sale for renewable energy in federal waters. The provisional winner of the lease sale, which auctioned two leases for a Wind Energy Area of 164,750 acres offshore Rhode Island and Massachusetts for wind energy development, is Deepwater Wind New England, LLC. When built, these areas could generate enough combined energy to power more than one million homes.

August 1, 2013

Secretary Moniz responds to questions at a Christian Science Monitor-sponsored breakfast.

August 1, 2013

President Obama announces his intent to nominate Lieutenant General Frank G. Klotz, USAF (Ret) for Under Secretary for Nuclear Security and Administrator for Nuclear Security of DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration and Steven Croley for DOE General Counsel. Lieutenant General Klotz is the Senior Fellow for Strategic Studies and Arms Control at the Council on Foreign Relations and former Commander of Air Force Global Strike Command. In the latter position, he established and then led a brand new 23,000-person organization that merged responsibility for all U.S. nuclear-capable bombers and land-based missiles under a single chain of command. Dr. Croley is Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Counsel to the President in the Office of the White House Counsel at the White House.

August 1, 2013

Secretary Moniz, in remarks at DOE’s Biomass 2013 annual conference, highlights the important role biofuels play in the Administration’s Climate Action Plan to increase energy security and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector. The Secretary also announces over $22 million in new investments to help develop cost-competitive algae fuels and streamline the biomass feedstock supply chain for advanced biofuels. Nearly $16.5 million of those investments will go to four projects in California, Hawaii, and New Mexico aimed at breaking down technical barriers and accelerating the development of sustainable, affordable algae biofuels.

August 1, 2013

Deputy Secretary Poneman testifies in a hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on DOE’s Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) and allegations of prohibited personnel practices at BPA detailed in the Management Alert issued by DOE’s Office of the Inspector General on July 16.

August 1, 2013

The Department announces a $4.5 million investment in two projects—led by Minnesota-based 3M and the Colorado School of Mines—to lower the cost, improve the durability, and increase the efficiency of next-generation fuel cell systems. The projects will continue research and development work aimed at making cost-effective, high-performing fuel cell membranes that can operate under hotter and drier conditions. 3M will receive $3 million to focus on developing innovative fuel cell membranes with improved durability and performance using processes which are easily scalable to commercial size. The Colorado School of Mines will receive $1.5 million to develop advanced hybrid membranes for cutting edge, next-generation fuel cells that are simpler and more affordable and able to operate at higher temperatures.

August 1, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration releases its annual U.S. Crude Oil and Natural Gas Proved Reserves for 2011. Proved oil reserves increased by 15 percent in 2011 to 29.0 billion barrels, marking the third consecutive annual increase and the highest volume of proved reserves since 1985. Natural gas proved reserves increased by almost 10 percent in 2011 to 348.8 trillion cubic feet, the 13th consecutive annual increase. “Horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing in shale and other tight rock formations continued to increase oil and natural gas reserves,” says EIA Administrator Adam Sieminski. “Higher oil prices helped drive record increases in crude oil reserves, while natural gas reserves grew strongly despite slightly lower natural gas prices in 2011.”

August 1, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an Audit Report examines the National Nuclear Security Administration's process of relocating the operations of the Kansas City Plant, which is the primary production site for non-nuclear weapon products, from the Bannister Federal Complex in Kansas City, Missouri, to the newly constructed National Security Campus. The IG finds that that Plant officials have established plans to ensure that non-nuclear components needed to support the stockpile are available throughout the relocation.

August 6, 2013

The Department releases two reports showcasing record growth across the U.S. wind market. According to these reports, the U.S. continues to be one of the world’s largest and fastest growing wind markets. In 2012, wind energy became the number one source of new U.S. electricity generation capacity for the first time – representing 43 percent of all new electric additions and accounting for $25 billion in U.S. investment. In the first four years of the Obama Administration, American electricity generation from wind and solar power more than doubled. Jose Zayas, Director of DOE's Wind and Water Power Technologies Office, in a video highlights the wind energy accomplishments in 2012. Secretary Moniz posts an article on the Energy Blog.

August 6, 2013

The Environmental Protection Agency finalizes the 2013 percentage standards for four fuel categories that are part of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program established by Congress. Most of these fuels are produced by American farmers and growers domestically. The final 2013 overall volumes and standards require 16.55 billion gallons of renewable fuels to be blended into the U.S. fuel supply (a 9.74 percent blend). This standard specifically requires: biomass-based diesel (1.28 billion gallons; 1.13 percent), advanced biofuels (2.75 billion gallons; 1.62 percent), and cellulosic biofuels (6.00 million gallons; 0.004 percent).

August 7, 2013

The Department announces that it has conditionally authorized Lake Charles Exports, LLC (Lake Charles) to export domestically produced liquefied natural gas (LNG) to countries that do not have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the U.S. from the Lake Charles Terminal in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Lake Charles previously received approval to export LNG from this facility to FTA countries on July 2011.

August 8, 2013

The Department hosts a Google+ Hangout on Wind Energy in America. Experts from across the wind industry answer questions from the public on wind energy.

August 9, 2013

The Department issues a Request for Task Proposal for deactivation activities at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (GDP) in Paducah, Kentucky. These services are required so that DOE can address the return of the Paducah GDP facilities that are currently being leased by USEC, formerly known as the United States Enrichment Corporation, a private company. USEC is expected to return the facilities to DOE in the near future.

August 12, 2013

On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of one of the worst power outages in the U.S., during which tens of millions of Americans were affected across parts of Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Jersey, the White House Council of Economic Advisers and the Department release Economic Benefits of Increasing Electric Grid Resilience to Weather Outages. The report assesses how to best protect the nation’s electric grid from power outages that occur during natural disasters. Assistant Secretary of Electricity Delivery & Energy Reliability Patricia Hoffman posts an article on the White House Blog and the Energy Blog. The Department published a related report in July 2013.

August 13, 2013

The Department breaks ground on the nation’s largest federally-owned wind project at DOE’s Pantex Plant in Amarillo, Texas. Upon completion, this five-turbine 11.5 megawatt project will power more than 60 percent of the plant with clean, renewable wind energy and reduce carbon emissions by over 35,000 metric tons per year – equivalent to taking 7,200 cars off the road. The Pantex Plant is the primary site for the assembly, disassembly, and maintenance of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile. Located on 1,500 acres east of the Pantex Plant, the project is expected to complete construction and start generating electricity in summer 2014.

August 13, 2013

The sixth annual National Clean Energy Summit is held in Las Vegas. Secretary Moniz and Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell are the keynote speakers.

August 13, 2013

Secretary Moniz and Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval meet in Las Vegas. They discuss the proposed shipment of uranium-233 materials from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory to the Nevada National Security Site. They make a joint statement and agree to form a working group to address the uranium-233 issue.

August 13, 2013

The Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia orders the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to resume its licensing review of the repository for high-level nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, that DOE had requested in 2010 be withdrawn.

August 14, 2013

The Department announces 12 projects to develop innovative heating, cooling and insulation technologies as well as open source energy efficiency software to help homes and commercial buildings save energy and money. These projects will receive an approximately $11 million DOE investment, matched by about $1 million in private sector funding.

August 14, 2013

The Department announces the selection of ten university projects to conduct advanced turbine technology research under DOE’s University Turbine Systems Research (UTSR) Program. The projects will develop solutions to specific technical challenges and barriers that must be overcome to enable the development of advanced gas turbines and gas turbine-based systems that will operate reliably, cleanly, efficiently, and cost effectively when fueled with coal-derived hydrogen, synthesis gas (syngas) and natural gas fuels.

August 14, 2013

The Department notifies employees in an email that Personally Identifiable Information (PII), including names and social security numbers, of 14,000 current and former agency employees has been compromised as the result of a cyber incident that occurred in late July. Current and former employees involved, DOE says, “will be provided with additional information and offered assistance on protecting themselves from potential identity theft. The Department will offer affected personnel free credit monitoring for one year as well as provide recommendations and best practices for minimizing the potential for identity theft.” No classified data was targeted or compromised.

August 14, 2013

Assistant Secretary of the Office of Electricity Delivery & Energy Reliability Patricia Hoffman posts a blog article on the tenth anniversary of the 2003 Northeast Blackout, highlighting progress that has since been made in enhancing the reliability of the North American power system.

August 14-15, 2013

Engineers from the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Sandia National Laboratories conduct two successful B61-12 nuclear bomb radar drop tests at the Tonopah Test Range in Nevada. Current B61s use decades-old vacuum tubes as part of their radar system. The new radar system, which had not been tested outside of a laboratory environment, was assembled in a gravity bomb configuration and successfully functioned as it was dropped from a helicopter. With the incorporation of a new Air Force tail kit assembly, the design also will enable consolidation and replacement of the existing B61-3, -4, -7, and -10 bombs by the B61-12 bomb.

August 15, 2013

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces the signing of an agreement with the People’s Republic of China’s General Administration of China Customs (GACC) to renew cooperative efforts to deter, detect, and interdict the illicit smuggling of special nuclear and other radiological materials. The agreement is signed by Secretary Moniz and China’s Minister of the GACC, YU Guangzhou, during the annual U.S.–China Strategic and Economic Dialogue in Washington.

August 16, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an Audit Report examining DOE’s Appliance and Equipment Standards Program tasked with administering statutory requirements for setting efficiency targets for major appliances. The IG finds that the program has not always ensured that manufacturers certified products to meet the minimum standards as required by Federal regulations and has not annually re-certified products as required.

August 21, 2013

The Department’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) announces that 22 projects across 15 states will receive a total of $36 million to develop transformational electric vehicle (EV) energy storage systems using innovative chemistries, architectures, and designs. ARPA-E’s new program, Robust Affordable Next Generation Energy Storage Systems (RANGE), aims to accelerate widespread EV adoption by dramatically improving driving range and reliability, and by providing low-cost, low-carbon alternatives to today’s vehicles.

August 23, 2016

The Department and the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement sign a Memorandum of Collaboration that will coordinate the ongoing efforts of the two agencies on offshore research and technological improvement projects to ensure safe, sustainable offshore production of oil and natural gas.

August 23, 2013

The Department’s Bonneville Power Administration, other federal agencies, and their partners outline in a draft implementation plan specific actions that will be taken between 2014 and 2018 to protect Columbia River Basin salmon and steelhead affected by the operation of federal dams on the lower Columbia and Snake rivers. The plan shows that actions in hydro, habitat, hatcheries, predation management, and research, monitoring and evaluation will meet the requirements to benefit fish.

August 23, 2013

The DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory announces a new study that  indicates that by 2025 wind and solar power electricity generation could become cost-competitive without federal subsidies, if new renewable energy development occurs in the most productive locations. Wyoming and New Mexico could be areas of robust competition among wind projects aiming to serve California and the Southwest. Both states are likely to have large amounts of untapped, developable, prime-quality wind potential after 2025. California, Arizona, and Nevada are likely to have surpluses of prime-quality solar resources

August 26, 2013

The Department announces the members of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (SEAB). The nineteen member board, comprised of scientists, business executives, academics and former government officials, serves as an independent advisory committee to Secretary Moniz. SEAB reports directly to the Secretary. It was chartered in 1990 to provide the Secretary with timely, balanced, external advice on issues concerning the Department. Eliminated during the administration of President George W. Bush, the SEAB was reestablished in August 2010 with 12 members. The board is expected to meet quarterly and at other times as needed. John Deutch and Persis Drell will serve as the Co-Chairs of SEAB.

August 26, 2013

The Department announces that it will partner with the State of New Jersey, NJ Transit, and the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to assess NJ Transit’s energy needs and help develop a conceptual design of an advanced microgrid system. Under this partnership, DOE’s Sandia National Laboratories will assist NJ Transit in its efforts to enhance the reliability and resiliency of electricity used for its rail and system operations. Secretary Moniz and Governor Chris Christie announce the memorandum of understanding at NJ Transit in Secaucus, New Jersey, and discuss making the region’s critical infrastructure more resilient in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy.

August 26, 2013

Secretary Moniz speaks at Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy in New York City. He begins his remarks by citing recent extreme weather events and their impact on energy infrastructure and refers to President Obama’s Climate Action Plan as part of the solution to addressing the issues climate change is already causing for communities across the country. “I'm not here to debate what's not debatable,” he tells the audience. “The evidence is overwhelming. The science is clear -- certainly clear for the level that one needs for policymaking -- in terms of the real and urgent threat of climate change.”

August 26, 2013

The Department’s Ames Laboratory announces plans for construction of a new research facility that will house current and next generation sensitive instruments such as electron and scanning probe microscopes. These instruments allow for detailed description of materials at the atomic level to aid in the discovery and design of novel materials. The project will cost nearly $10 million.

August 28, 2013

The Department announces the release of a new comprehensive resource: A Guide to Federal Finance Facilities Available for Energy Efficiency Upgrades and Clean Energy Deployment. This guide lists the various federal financing programs for which energy efficiency and clean energy qualify -- making it easier for state, local, and tribal leaders, along with their partners in the private sector, to find capital for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects.

August 28, 2013

In a letter to Secretary Moniz, Catherine Templeton, the director of the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC), warns that “missing the agreed upon milestones for waste treatment and tank closure” at the Savannah River site “triggers significant penalties.”

August 29, 2013

The U.S. and France issue the Joint Statement on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage that sets forth the common views of the two nations on civil nuclear liability, including their support for establishment of a global nuclear liability regime allowing for adequate compensation to victims of a nuclear accident, as called for in the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) Action Plan on Nuclear Safety. The Joint Statement results from discussions between the U.S. and France over the past year that culminated in the signing of the Joint Statement.

August 29, 2013

The Department announces $16 million for seventeen projects to help sustainably and efficiently capture energy from waves, tides, and currents. These projects will increase the power production and reliability of wave and tidal devices and help gather valuable data on how deployed devices interact with the surrounding environment.

August 29, 2013

The Department issues two proposed rules that could cut energy bills by up to $28 billion and cut emissions by over 350 million metric tons of CO2 over 30 years. One would improve energy efficiency standards for commercial refrigeration equipment. This proposed rule could, if adopted as final, cut energy bills by up to $4 billion and result in CO2 emissions reductions of 55 million metric tons over 30 years. The other proposed rule would improve energy efficiency standards for walk-in coolers and freezers. If adopted as final, this proposed rule could cut energy bills by up to $24 billion and result in CO2 emissions reductions of 298 million metric tons over 30 years.

August 29, 2013

The White House releases a blog article in response to the revision by the Bureau of Economic Analysis of its estimate of second quarter GDP from 1.7 percent to 2.5 percent. “This stronger estimate of growth was a result of an upward revision in net exports,” notes the White House, “with the trade data showing that a key part of the revision is because the trade deficit in petroleum fell to a record low in June. This is yet another reminder that the President’s focus on increasing America’s energy independence is not just a critical national security strategy, it is also part of an economic plan to create jobs, expand growth and cut the trade deficit.”

August 29, 2013

The Department publishes in the Federal Register a Request for Information (RFI) seeking public input for a draft Integrated, Interagency Pre-application (IIP) Process for Transmission Authorizations. The proposed IIP Process is intended to improve interagency and intergovernmental coordination focused on ensuring that project proponents develop and submit accurate and complete information early in the project planning process to facilitate efficient and timely environmental reviews and agency decisions.

August 29, 2013

The Department issues a Preliminary Notice of Violation (PNOV) to Brookhaven Science Associates, LLC (BSA) for two violations of DOE’s worker safety and health regulations. BSA is the contractor at DOE’s Brookhaven National Laboratory.

August 29, 2013

The Department announces that its Former Worker Medical Screening Program (FWP) has reached a major milestone with over 100,000 exams having been provided to former workers since the inception of the program in 1996. The FWP addresses the occupational health legacy of DOE’s 70-plus years of nuclear weapons design and production.

August 29, 2013

Oil prices reach a two-year high at $110 per barrel for West Texas Intermediate.

August 30, 2013

Jonathan Levy, deputy chief of staff to Secretary Moniz, in an email to DOE employees provides an update on the cyber incident that occurred in late July. In an email on August 14, employees were informed that about 14,000 past and current DOE employees’ Personally Identifiable Information (PII) may have been affected. The Department “has now confirmed that names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers for approximately 53,000 individuals were affected, including current and former employees, dependents and contractors.”

September 3, 2013

Secretary Moniz visits DOE’s Los Alamos National Laboratory and the new biological laboratory built by the New Mexico Consortium to explore alternative fuel sources from algae and other plants. The Secretary also addresses Los Alamos employees and receives briefings on the Laboratory’s nuclear weapons and intelligence work. “In view of the President's emphasis on nuclear security and climate change,” the Secretary says, “the work at Los Alamos has never been more important."

September 4, 2013

President Obama arrives in Stockholm, Sweden, for a brief visit ahead of the G-20 meeting in St. Petersburg. The President and Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt discuss, among other issues, climate change and clean energy technology and issue a Joint Statement. The White House releases a Fact Sheet. The President also tours an expo at the Royal Institute of Technology featuring some of the clean energy technologies being developed in Sweden.

September 4, 2013

The Department announces more than $45 million for thirty-eight new projects to build a 21st century transportation sector and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Through the Advanced Vehicle Power Technology Alliance between DOE and the Department of the Army, the Army is contributing an additional $3 million in co-funding. The 38 projects span five major areas critical to advanced transportation technologies, such as lightweighting and propulsion materials as well as affordable, efficient batteries, power electronics, fuels and lubricants, and efficient heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems.

September 5, 2013

Media outlets report that U.S. monthly electric vehicle (EV) sales shattered the 10,000 unit barrier. Cumulative EV sales for August are estimated at 11,363 -- a 30 percent increase over the previous monthly record and a 75 percent increase since the same time in 2012.

September 5, 2013

The Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology release a study examining the underlying causes for shifts from a global network of solar photovoltaic manufacturing to a production base that is now largely located in China. Although the prevailing belief is that low labor costs and direct government subsidies for PV manufacturing in China account for that country's dominance in PV manufacturing, the study shows that a majority of the region's competitive advantage comes from production scale—enabled, in part, through preferred access to capital (indirect government subsidies)—and resulting supply-chain benefits. The study's findings suggest that the current advantages of China-based manufacturers could be reproduced in the U.S.

September 5-6, 2013

President Obama is in St. Petersburg, Russia, for a two-day meeting of the G-20. The President reaches separate agreements with the G-20 and with China to combat global climate change by addressing the rapid growth in the use and release of climate-damaging hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). Two statements on HFCs are released, one in the context of the G20 Leaders’ Declaration and one bilaterally with China.

September 6, 2013

The Department announces its intent to modify the scope of the Northern Pass Transmission Line Project Environmental Impact Statement (DOE/EIS–0463) and to conduct additional public scoping meetings. Because the proposed Federal action may involve floodplains and wetlands, the draft EIS will include a floodplains and wetlands assessment as appropriate, and the final EIS and/or Record of Decision will include a floodplains and wetlands statement of findings.

September 9, 2013

Secretary Moniz meets with Canada’s Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver and discusses the Keystone XL pipeline, climate change, efforts to deploy clean energy, carbon-capture technologies, and ways to enhance the reliability of the electric grid.

September 9, 2013

The Department’s Office of Inspector General (IG) releases a follow-up audit of the Bioenergy Technologies Office program supporting the development of biomass resources into commercially viable biofuels, bioproducts, and biopower.  The IG finds that, despite over 7 years of effort and the expenditure of about $603 million, DOE had not yet achieved its biorefinery development and production goals

September 10, 2013

President Obama announces his intent to nominate Bradley Crowell as Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs and Christopher Smith as Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy at DOE.

September 10, 2013

The Department’s Ames Laboratory officially opens its Critical Materials Institute, DOE’s its fifth Energy Innovation Hub, with a mandate to develop solutions to domestic shortages of rare-earth metals and other materials vital to U.S. energy security. These materials are essential in many modern clean-energy technologies such as wind turbines, solar panels, electric vehicles, and energy-efficient lighting.

September 10, 2013

The National Research Council issues a report done at the request of Congress on the quality of the scientific research and engineering being done at the three nuclear weapons laboratories: Los Alamos, Livermore, and Sandia. The report finds that science and engineering capabilities that underpin the nuclear weapons stockpile stewardship and nonproliferation missions at the labs are “healthy and vibrant.” In many areas, science and engineering at the labs is of very high quality. The report nonetheless identifies several stresses that could contribute to the deterioration of the work environment for scientists and engineers and limit the quality of their work in the future. Among these, the report notes that the current system for managing risks is contributing to escalating costs and schedule delays, and in some cases may limit experimentation. DOE and its National Nuclear Security Administration need to work with laboratory managers to review the system for assessing and mitigating these risks to improve efficiency while maintaining a safe working environment.

September 11, 2013

The Department announces that it has conditionally authorized Dominion Cove Point LNG, LP, to export domestically produced liquefied natural gas (LNG) to countries that do not have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the U.S. from the Cove Point LNG Terminal in Calvert County, Maryland. Dominion Cove Point previously received approval to export LNG from this facility to FTA countries in October 2011.

September 11, 2013

The Department and the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) announce a new partnership to support the accelerated deployment of clean energy technologies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The DOE-NASCAR Memorandum of Understanding identifies several transformative energy technologies that will benefit NASCAR and its fans. Those technologies include electric vehicle charging stations, solid-oxide fuel cells, advanced biofuels, and emerging natural gas technologies for NASCAR teams’ long-haul trucks.

September 11, 2013

Secretary Moniz dedicates the Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) and delivers remarks at DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado. ESIF is the nation’s first major research facility focused on clean energy grid integration and wide-scale deployment. ESIF will help manufacturers, utilities, and public and private sector researchers overcome the challenges of integrating clean energy and energy efficiency technologies into today's energy infrastructure. Secretary Moniz and NREL Director Arvizu also unveil Peregrine – the newest DOE supercomputer. NREL collaborated with HP and Intel to develop an innovative warm-water, liquid-cooled supercomputer. Peregrine will reside in the new ESIF data center, designed to be the world’s most energy-efficient high performance computing data center. Additionally, Peregrine’s petascale computing capability (1.2 quadrillion calculations per second peak performance) represents the world’s largest computing capability dedicated solely to renewable energy and energy efficiency research.

September 11, 2013

The Department’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory announces that the lab and Florida-based Chemergy Inc. plan to demonstrate an innovative bioenergy technology that converts wastewater treatment plant byproducts into hydrogen gas to produce electricity. The $1.75 million project will demonstrate an integrated system on a limited industrial scale at the Delta Diablo Sanitation District facility in Antioch, California.

September 12, 2013

The Department announces the opening of a one-of-its-kind national secure data center dedicated to the independent analysis of advanced hydrogen and fuel cell technologies at the new Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) located at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The National Fuel Cell Technology Evaluation Center (NFCTEC) allows industry, academia, and government organizations to submit and review data gathered from projects to advance cost-effective fuel cell technology.

September 12, 2013

The Department and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announce a new label that features EPA fuel economy estimates and CO2 estimates for used vehicles sold in the U.S. since 1984. Consumers may create the new label electronically as part of a new tool on FuelEconomy.gov. This electronic graphic can be downloaded and included in online advertisements on the web, while the paper label may be printed and affixed to the vehicle window. As a vehicle’s fuel economy changes very little over a typical 15-year life with proper maintenance, the original EPA fuel economy estimate remains the best indicator of a used vehicle’s average gas mileage.

September 12, 2013

The 700th shipment of remote-handled (RH) transuranic (TRU) waste arrives at DOE’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). Disposal of RH-TRU waste began in January 2007, with shipments coming from eight sites.

September 12, 2013

The Department and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that will enhance collaboration in promoting the conservation of migratory birds. DOE manages land that includes wetlands, shrub-steppe, shortgrass prairie, desert, and forested areas that provide habitat for migratory birds. In the MOU, DOE recognizes that some of its activities have the potential to affect migratory birds (e.g., transmission lines, power poles, invasive weed control, and various construction activities), and agrees that it is important to conserve migratory birds and their habitats. The MOU specifically recognizes actions currently implemented by DOE that involve migratory bird conservation.

September 13, 2013

Secretary Moniz opens the first meeting of the reconstituted Secretary of Energy Advisory Board. The first agenda item was the charge from the Secretary to the Board to form two task forces. The first task force is charged with reviewing DOE’s funding constructs. The second is charged to advise the Quadrennial Energy Review project.

September 16-20, 2013

The 57th annual session of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference meets in Vienna. More than 3 000 delegates from 159 IAEA Member States, international organizations, NGO's, and the media attend the event

September 16, 2013

Secretary Moniz and Director General of the Russian Federation State Corporation “Rosatom” Sergey Kirienko, meeting at the International Atomic Energy Agency’s General Conference in Vienna, sign an agreement providing the legal framework necessary to expand cooperation between U.S. and Russian nuclear research laboratories, institutes, and facilities in a broad range of areas, including nuclear technology, nonproliferation, fundamental and applied science, energy, and environment. It complements provisions of the U.S. - Russian agreement on peaceful uses of nuclear energy, which came into force in January 2011 and opened new opportunities to work together on a wide range of issues in this sphere.

September 16, 2013

Ecotality, Inc., a maker of charging stations for electric cars and the recipient of three financial assistance awards over a 6-year period from DOE valued at $135 million, files for bankruptcy protection and says it plans to auction its assets.

September 17, 2013

The Department announces that it is auctioning the remainder of Fisker Automotive’s loan obligation to DOE, offering the best possible recovery for the taxpayer. In September 2009, DOE made a $528.7 million conditional loan to Fisker for the development of two lines of plug-in hybrids under the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) Loan program. Major setbacks in Fisker’s production schedules and delayed sales, however, have caused the company to miss critical milestones laid out in their loan agreement. Only $192 million of the loan was actually disbursed, as DOE stopped disbursements to Fisker in June 2011. The Department had exhausted any realistic possibility for a sale that might have protected the government’s entire investment.

September 17, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) signs an agreement with the Republic of Korea’s Ministry of Science, ICT & Future Planning to continue cooperation on low enriched uranium (LEU) fuel development. This agreement will facilitate conversion of civilian research reactors in Europe so that the reactors will use non-weapons usable LEU fuel instead of highly enriched uranium (HEU). The Republic of Korea has developed the LEU powder that is used in the new fuel and provided 100 kilograms of the powder at no cost for fuel tests.

September 17, 2013

The Department’s Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility announces that researchers have made the first experimental determination of the weak charge of the proton. The results also include the determinations of the weak charge of the neutron, and of the up quark and down quark. The weak force is one of the four fundamental forces in the universe, along with gravity, electromagnetism, and the strong force.

September 18, 2013

Secretary Moniz testifies before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Power on the Obama administration’s climate change policies and activities.

September 18, 2013

The Department announces that Fluor Federal Petroleum Operations, LLC, has been awarded a management and operating contract valued at $1.46 billion to run DOE’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) for a period of five years, after which the DOE has an option for an additional five years of performance. The SPR is currently managed by DM Petroleum Operations Company. After a transition period, Fluor will assume responsibility for management and operation of the SPR on December 1, 2013.

September 19, 2013

Secretary Moniz posts an article on the White House Blog on the clean energy revolution. The article highlights the release of a new DOE report, “Revolution Now: the Future Arrives for Four Clean Energy Technologies.” The article also appears on the Energy Blog.

September 19, 2013

Secretary Moniz announces awards totaling approximately $30 million for the development of new tools and technologies to strengthen protection of the nation’s electric grid and oil and gas infrastructure from cyber attack. The eleven projects, which will combine advanced expertise in power system engineering and cybersecurity, will include testing of the new products to demonstrate their effectiveness and interoperability.

September 19, 2013

The Department announces 33 energy projects that will receive approximately $66 million from the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) under two new programs. One program, Modern Electro/Thermochemical Advancements for Light-metal Systems (METALS), provides $32 million to find cost-effective and energy-efficient manufacturing techniques to process and recycle metals for lightweight vehicles. The other program, Reducing Emissions using Methanotrophic Organisms for Transportation Energy (REMOTE), provides $34 million to find advanced biocatalyst technologies that can convert natural gas to liquid fuel for transportation.

September 19, 2013

Lieutenant General Frank G. Klotz, USAF (Ret), President Obama’s nominee for Under Secretary for Nuclear Security and Administrator for Nuclear Security of DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration, testifies before the Senate Committee on Armed Services.

September 19-20, 2013

The Department and the MIT Energy Initiative host the second annual Women in Clean Energy Symposium. The Symposium brings together a diverse range of representatives – from start-ups to industry, government to academia – all focused on enabling and supporting the careers of women in clean energy.

September 20, 2013

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposes Clean Air Act standards to cut carbon pollution from new power plants in order to combat climate change and improve public health. In addition, EPA has initiated broad-based outreach and direct engagement with state, tribal, and local governments, industry and labor leaders, non-profits, and others to establish carbon pollution standards for existing power plants and build on state efforts to move toward a cleaner power sector. Secretary Moniz issues a statement on the new EPA carbon pollution standards. The EPA, he states, “has taken a significant step in implementing President Obama’s Climate Action Plan by releasing its draft rule addressing future power plants.” The Secretary says that DOE “will work with our partners to further increase power plant efficiency across the range of generation types, promote advanced fossil energy technologies such as carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), and deploy more clean energy. DOE is also working to encourage the growth of advanced fossil energy technologies through a new process for $8 billion in loan guarantees for projects that avoid, reduce, or sequester air pollutants or greenhouse gas emissions.” The White House issues a blog article on progress in implementing President Obama’s Climate Action Plan.

September 20, 2013

The Department announces more than $60 million in nuclear energy research awards and improvements to university research reactors and infrastructure. The 91 awards will help train and educate the next generation of leaders in America’s nuclear industry as well as support new and advanced nuclear technologies from reactor materials to innovative sensors and instruments to more efficient manufacturing.

September 23, 2013

Collegiate teams involving more than 1,000 students from around the world arrive at the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, California, to begin the construction of their highly energy-efficient, solar-powered houses competing in DOE’s Solar Decathlon 2013.

September 24, 2013

President Obama, in an address to the United Nations General Assembly, discusses the need to “resolve the issue of Iran’s nuclear program.” He notes that in communications with recently elected Iranian President Rouhani, he has made it clear that “America prefers to resolve our concerns over Iran’s nuclear program peacefully, although we are determined to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.” In response to Rouhani’s stated commitment to reach an agreement, President Obama says that he is directing Secretary of State John Kerry “to pursue this effort with the Iranian government in close cooperation with the European Union -- the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Russia and China.”

September 24, 2013

Secretary Moniz posts an article on the Energy Blog updating the cleanup progress at DOE’s Hanford site. “The Department has made tremendous progress in the cleanup efforts at Hanford,” the Secretary says. “But we still have a long way to go. It is critical that we move forward as expeditiously as possible to begin immobilizing the tank waste, and it is critically important to me that the Department continue to work closely with the state of Washington as we continue to advance this essential cleanup project.” The Department releases a Framework document that outlines a phased approach for beginning tank waste treatment while continuing to resolve technical issues with the Pretreatment and High-Level Waste Facilities.

September 24, 2013

The Department launches the Minorities in Energy Initiative, which seeks to inspire underrepresented Americans to pursue careers in energy and supporting their advancement into leadership positions.

September 24, 2013

The Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory releases a report examining the potential impacts of increasing wind and solar power generation on the operators of coal and gas plants in the West. To accommodate higher amounts of wind and solar power on the electric grid, utilities must ramp down and ramp up or stop and start conventional generators more frequently to provide reliable power for their customers – a practice called cycling. The study finds that increased cycling to accommodate high levels of wind and solar generation increases operating costs by 2%–5% for the average fossil-fueled plant.

September 24, 2013

The Department announces that it has received a 2013 Green Power Leadership Award from the Environmental Protection Agency. The annual awards recognize the country’s leading green power consumers for their commitment and contribution to helping advance the development of the nation’s voluntary green power market.

September 25, 2013

The Department recognizes more than 120 manufacturers that are making smart investments to save on energy costs, cut greenhouse gas emissions, and improve their bottom lines. Through DOE’s Better Buildings, Better Plants Program, over 1,750 plants across the U.S. have saved about $1 billion in energy costs and approximately 190 trillion British thermal units – equivalent to about 11 million metric tons of CO2 emissions.

September 25, 2013

The Department and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory release a new report on the market size, trends, and growth projections for America’s energy service company (ESCO) industry. The report details steady growth in the energy savings performance-based contracting sector over the past ten years, led by investments from state and local governments, the federal government and K-12 schools. Each year, the ESCO industry typically saves customers more than $4 billion in utility bills and enough energy to power nearly 2 million households – equivalent to cutting over 20 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions.

September 26, 2013

The Department announces up to $9 million in funding to facilitate rapid response to abnormal grid conditions. As a result, utilities will be able to better detect and head off potential blackouts, while improving day-to-day grid reliability and helping with the integration of clean renewable sources of energy onto the grid. The funding opportunity targets teams comprised of utilities and software developers to develop and implement advanced software which would improve the operational reliability of the grid.

September 26, 2013

Secretary of State John Kerry and representatives of the other P5+1 nations (the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany) meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif at the UN in New York to discuss Iran’s nuclear weapons program. In a side meeting with Zarif, Secretary Kerry notes afterward, “we took a moment to explore a little further the possibilities of how to proceed based on what President Obama laid out in his speech to the General Assembly earlier this week. And so we’ve agreed to try to continue a process that we’ll try to make concrete, to find a way to answer the questions that people have about Iran’s nuclear program.” It is the first official high level meeting between the U.S. and Iran since 1979.

September 26, 2013

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) issues its fifth assessment report, Climate Change 2013: the Physical Science Basis, approved on Friday by member governments of the IPCC in Stockholm, Sweden. The study finds that it is “extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century. The evidence for this has grown, thanks to more and better observations, an improved understanding of the climate system response and improved climate models. Warming in the climate system is unequivocal and since 1950 many changes have been observed throughout the climate system that are unprecedented over decades to millennia.”

September 27, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an Audit Report examining DOE’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program activities with approximately $1 billion in funding over the last 5 years and implemented through various projects at Federal laboratories, universities, non-profit institutions, Government agencies, and industry participants. The IG finds that DOE has not always effectively managed the financial aspects of the program, noting that DOE approved and reimbursed unsupported and/or unallowable costs at 9 of the 10 recipients included in the review.

September 27, 2013

President Obama, in a statement at the White House, says that he has just spoken on the phone with President Rouhani of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This is the first direct talks between U.S. and Iranian leaders since the 1979 Islamic revolution. The two discuss ongoing efforts to reach an agreement over Iran’s nuclear program.  President Obama tells President Rouhani that “while there will surely be important obstacles to moving forward, and success is by no means guaranteed, I believe we can reach a comprehensive solution.” A senior administration official does a White House background briefing on the call.

September 27, 2013

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) issues an assessment report, Climate Change 2013: the Physical Science Basis, which concludes that human impact on the climate system is clear and evident in most regions of the globe. “It is extremely likely,” the report notes, “that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century.” Secretary Moniz issues a statement. “I believe that the report is a watershed,” he says. “We have clear evidence from our climate scientists that global warming is happening and that we as humans are playing a critical role, which is the underpinning of the President's Climate Action Plan. The plan places a strong emphasis on mitigating the risks of climate change through further investments in clean technologies aligning with our all-of-the-above energy strategy.” The Secretary, in an interview by C-SPAN, discusses the IPCC report. The White House also issues a statement.

September 30, 2013

Secretary Moniz announces a proposed $100 million in Fiscal Year 2014 funding for Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRCs) to accelerate the scientific breakthroughs needed to build a new 21st-century energy economy. Research supported by this initiative will enable fundamental advances in energy production and use. The Department currently funds 46 EFRCs, which were selected for five-year funding in 2009. With support for those centers set to expire in July 2014, DOE has announced a competition for a second round of funding.

September 30, 2013

The DOE Office of the General Counsel's enforcement office settles an enforcement action against Ningbo Hicon International Industry Company, Ltd. for $1,927,097. Ningbo Hicon is a Chinese company that manufactures consumer refrigeration products for a variety of private labelers. Ningbo Hicon agreed to the settlement after manufacturing and distributing chest freezers that consumed about 30% more energy than permitted under the appliance energy conservation standards. This settlement reflects the second largest penalty since the enforcement office was created in 2010.

September 30, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an audit report on allegations that Bechtel National Inc., the contractor at the Hanford Site's Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP), was missing design control documentation for the WTP and as such, could not demonstrate that equipment was appropriately manufactured. The IG's review substantiates the allegations, finding significant shortcomings in DOE’s process for managing the design and fabrication changes of waste processing equipment procured for the WTP.

September 30 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an audit report examining DOE's Energy Innovation Hubs initiative. The IG finds that the initiative was “generally satisfying” the specific Federal, DOE, and programmatic requirements evaluated during the review.

September 30, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG) issues an audit report examining resumption by DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) of criticality experiments at the Nevada National Security Site. Citing safety and security concerns, NNSA in 2004 halted criticality experiments at Los Alamos National Laboratory and authorized a capital project to transfer this capability to the Device Assembly Facility at the Nevada site. The project remodeled a portion of the Device Assembly Facility to form the National Criticality Experiments Research Center (NCERC). The IG finds that NNSA restored many of the former Los Alamos capabilities at the NCERC in Nevada but notes that several problems with start-up activities resulted in delays in restoring the full array of experimental capabilities included in the project.

October 1, 2013

Congress fails to appropriate fiscal year 2014 funding for executive branch departments and agencies. The federal government begins to shut down. As a result of the nature of DOE funding, the Department will be able to operate for a short period of time, and employees stay on the job. Managers are advised, however, to postpone all travel, training, and other activities that can be deferred in the near term, in order to preserve budgetary resources.

October 4, 2013

The Department announces that it is working closely with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and in support of state and local officials in advance of Tropical Storm Karen located over the south-east Gulf of Mexico. Situation reports are issued on October 4 and 5.

October 4, 2013

The Department’s Bonneville Power Administration announces that it made its 30th consecutive annual payment, in full and on time, to the U.S. Treasury: a total of $692 million for fiscal year 2013, which ended September 30.

October 9, 2013

In a message to DOE employees on the ongoing funding crisis, Kevin Knobloch, Secretary Moniz’s chief of staff, says that DOE has “already felt major impacts at some of our sites, including significant contractor impacts at some of our clean up operations, and further personnel impacts are expected soon if Congress cannot resolve this situation.” Knobloch notes that DOE’s Energy Information Administration “will need to cease operations and furlough EIA staff at the end of the day on October 11th.”

October 11, 2013

Kevin Knobloch, chief of staff to Secretary Moniz, in an email to DOE employees provides an update on the cyber incident that occurred in late July. The ongoing investigation, he reports, “has unfortunately discovered that a large number of additional federal employees, dependents, contractors and former DOE federal employees had information compromised. The total number is now 104,179. Of those, 64,480 are personnel within our direct DOE Federal and M&O Contractor Community, including spouses, dependents, and former employees. The remainder are personnel from other federal agencies and support contractors.”

October 12, 2013

After the closest competition ever at Solar Decathlon 2013, Team Austria: Vienna University of Technology is the winner, closely followed by the University of Nevada Las Vegas and Czech Republic: Czech Technical University.

October 15, 2013

The Supreme Court agrees to hear a major case challenging Environmental Protection Agency regulations of greenhouse gas emissions from stationary sources such as power plants.

October 16, 2013

Bradley Crowell is confirmed by the Senate as the Department’s Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs. As Assistant Secretary, Crowell will lead the Department’s coordination with Congress, State, Tribal, City and County Governments, other Federal agencies, stakeholders and the general public. Crowell’s role will include enhancing cooperation with states as a key component to the national clean energy agenda.

October 17, 2013

President Obama signs H.R. 2775 into law, providing funding for the federal government to January 15, 2014. In a message to DOE employees, Secretary Moniz and Deputy Secretary Poneman thank them for their “patience and positive attitude during this trying time.” They note that “we felt major impacts on our operations, from the EIA being shuttered briefly to large workforce reductions at nuclear cleanup sites and scaled down operations in the nuclear weapons production complex.”

October 17, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) commemorates the 50th Anniversary of the launch of the first pair of Vela Hotel satellites from Cape Canaveral. The purpose of Vela was to monitor compliance with the 1963 Limited Test Ban Treaty, a cornerstone arms control treaty which prohibits nuclear weapons testing in the atmosphere, in outer space, and under water. The original Vela contract called for 10 satellites at the cost of $15 million. The first six satellites were so successful, reliable, and durable that the last four were never launched. In 1965, the Department of Defense approved an advanced Vela program equipped with more capable detectors, including optical flash detectors. Overall, twelve Vela satellites were launched—the last pair on April 8, 1970.

October 21, 2013

The Department launches seven new regional Combined Heat and Power Technical Assistance Partnerships across the country. Since 2003, DOE has supported a set of regional centers to help further grow America’s combined heat and power (CHP) market for commercial, institutional and industrial businesses, state agencies, utilities, and trade associations. Located in California, Colorado, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Washington state, the next generation of these centers will offer best practices for CHP project financing, management and state policies, market analysis tools and resources, and technical site evaluations.

October 21, 2013

The Department’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) announces $27 million in funding for 14 projects aimed at developing next-generation power conversion devices that could dramatically transform how power is controlled and converted throughout the grid. The projects selected under ARPA-E’s SWITCHES program, short for “Strategies for Wide-Bandgap, Inexpensive Transistors for Controlling High-Efficiency Systems,” aim to find innovative ways to lower the cost and improve the efficiency of power electronics

October 22, 2013

Secretary Moniz announces about $60 million to support innovative solar energy research and development. As part of the Department’s SunShot Initiative, DOE is investing $12 million across 17 companies to help commercialize a wide range of technologies and services – from online tools that can map a rooftop’s solar potential in seconds to automated installation systems for utility scale photovoltaic plants; $16 million to four projects that will help develop solar devices that near the theoretical efficiency limits of single junction solar cells, or about 30 percent efficiency; $8 million to help utilities forecast and integrate high levels of renewable energy generation into the grid, while ensuring reliable and affordable power; and $15 million to develop power engineering curriculum and launch four regional training consortiums.

October 22, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) releases the initial edition of a new monthly Drilling Productivity Report to provide region-specific insights into oil and natural gas drilling rig efficiency, new well productivity, existing well decline rates, and overall oil and natural gas production trends.

October 23, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports that the U.S. and Canada are “the only major producers of commercially viable natural gas from shale formations in the world . . . . China is the only nation outside of North America that has registered commercially viable production of shale gas, although the volumes contribute less than 1% of the total natural gas production in that country. In comparison, shale gas as a share of total natural gas production in 2012 was 39% in the United States and 15% in Canada.”

October 23, 2013

The Department releases a new report showing progress for the U.S. offshore wind energy market in 2012, including the completion of two commercial lease auctions for federal Wind Energy Areas and 11 commercial-scale U.S. projects representing over 3,800 megawatts (MW) of capacity reaching an advanced stage of development.

October 24, 2013

Secretary Moniz marks the 40th anniversary of the 1973 oil embargo in a policy speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. The Secretary discusses where the U.S. and the world have come since the embargo and what DOE is doing to address four major policy challenges in the path ahead.

October 24, 2013

Deputy Secretary Poneman, in a memo to Elliot Mainzer, acting director of DOE’s Bonneville Power Administration, outlines steps DOE is taking in the wake of alleged prohibited personnel practices at BPA.

October 25, 2013

The Department issues the Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the FutureGen 2.0 Project. The EIS evaluates the potential impacts associated with DOE's proposed action to provide financial assistance to the FutureGen Industrial Alliance for the FutureGen 2.0 Project, including the direct and indirect environmental impacts from construction and operation of the proposed project. DOE's proposed action would provide approximately $1 billion of funding (primarily under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) to support construction and operation of the FutureGen 2.0 Project. The funding would be used for project design and development, procurement of capital equipment, construction, and to support a 56-month demonstration period for a coal-fueled electric generation plant integrated with carbon capture and storage.

October 25, 2013

The Department honors over 150 nuclear weapons program workers at the National Atomic Testing Museum in Las Vegas. The event is conducted in recognition of the US Senate Resolution that designates October 30th as a National Day of Remembrance to recognize the DOE nuclear weapons workers for their contribution, service, and sacrifice for the defense of the U.S.

October 28, 2013

Secretary Moniz, at the start of a three-day visit to China, gives a talk on "Climate and Energy: the Road Ahead for US-China Cooperation" at Tsinghua University in Beijing. The Secretary says that he believes that “the challenges of energy and climate change are the most urgent facing our generation all around the globe.” He also highlights the three U.S.-China Clean Energy Research Centers (CERCs) as important means for cooperation between the U.S. and China on these issues.

October 28, 2013

The Department announces the availability of the Amchitka Island, Alaska, Biological Monitoring Report 2011 Sampling Results for the Amchitka, Alaska, site. The report provides the results of terrestrial and marine sampling in the areas surrounding Amchitka and Adak Islands in 2011 to determine whether local subsistence- and commercial-catch seafood is safe to eat. Between 1965 and 1971, the U.S. Government conducted three underground nuclear tests on Amchitka Island.

October 29, 2013

Secretary Moniz marks the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Sandy making landfall in New Jersey in an article on the Energy Blog. The Secretary discusses the federal government’s commitment to recovery and rebuilding efforts and DOE’s actions to protect the energy infrastructure and create partnerships to build stronger, more resilient communities.

October 29, 2013

Donald L. Cook, Deputy Administrator for Defense Programs of DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration, testifies on the B61 Life Extension Program and Future Stockpile Strategy before the Subcommittee on Strategic Forces of the House Committee on Armed Services.

October 30, 2013

President Obama announces his intent to nominate Joseph Hezir as DOE Chief Financial Officer. Hezir is a Research Engineer and the Executive Director of The Future of Solar Energy Study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Energy Initiative.

October 30, 2013

Deputy Secretary Poneman posts and article on cybersecurity on the Energy Blog. He emphasizes the simple steps everyone can take to increase cybersecurity at work and at home.

October 30, 2013

Acting Director of DOE’s Office of Science Patricia Dehmer testifies before a hearing of the Subcommittee on Energy of the House Committee on Space, Science, and Technology on the role of the Office of Science in providing tools for scientific discovery and basic energy research.

October 30, 2013

The Department’s Office of Nuclear Energy hosts a dialogue on nuclear energy with Tribal Leaders from across the U.S. in New Orleans.

October 30, 2013

The Sanford Underground Research Facility (Sanford Lab) in Lead, SD, announces the first run results of more than three months of the Large Underground Xenon (LUX) experiment, the most sensitive dark matter detector in the world. The Sanford Lab is a state-owned facility, and DOE supports its operation. The LUX scientific collaboration, which is supported by the National Science Foundation and DOE, includes 17 research universities and national laboratories.

October 30, 2013

The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) sends to Congress its fourth annual report on safety issues associated with aging infrastructure at DOE defense nuclear facilities. “DOE relies on several facilities that are at or near the end of life,” the DNFSB notes, “but still must carry out national security and legacy waste cleanup missions.”

October 31, 2013

Secretary Moniz on a visit to Japan meets with officials and delivers remarks on the future of U.S.-Japan energy cooperation. The Secretary discusses climate change and energy policy. He also mentions the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, noting that from the beginning the U.S. “worked to support the Government of Japan in the immediate response efforts and in recovery, and are prepared to do so as well in the cleanup and decommissioning activities that will still take quite some time in the years ahead.”

October 31, 2013

The Department announces a new concentrating solar power (CSP) project led by the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD).  The project will integrate utility-scale CSP technology with SMUD’s 500-megawatt (MW) natural gas-fired Cosumnes Power Plant. Supported by a $10 million DOE investment, this project will help design, build, and test cost-competitive CSP-fossil fuel power generating systems in the U.S.

October 31, 2013

Department's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) announces new topics under its Small Business Innovation Research and Technology Transfer program that will help small businesses develop innovative ideas and deliver market-driven solutions. EERE’s areas of interest range from energy-saving buildings and manufacturing to sustainable transportation and renewable electricity generation. Small businesses that win awards in these programs keep the rights to any technologies they develop and are encouraged to commercialize them.

October 31, 2013

The California Valley Solar Ranch in San Luis Obispo County, California, begins commercial operations. The facility is one of the world’s largest solar photovoltaic power plants with the ability to shift the position of panels wirelessly to track weather and optimize solar input -- ensuring the panels collect as much of the sun’s energy as possible. The 250 megawatt project is led by NRG Energy and SunPower and was made possible by a $1.2 billion loan guarantee from DOE’s Loan Programs Office. The facility produces enough energy to power more than 42,000 homes.

November 1, 2013

Secretary Moniz, on his trip to Japan, visits the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station and issues a statement. “It is stunning that one can see firsthand the destructive force of the tsunami even more than two and a half years after the tragic events,” the Secretary notes. “The DOE, our national labs, and U.S. companies will continue to offer our experience and capabilities to assist the Japanese government and TEPCO, especially with regard to water contamination issues.”

November 1, 2013

President Obama issues an Executive Order (E.O.) on Climate Preparedness directing Federal agencies to modernize Federal programs to support climate-resilient investments, manage lands and waters for climate preparedness and resilience, provide information, data, and tools for climate change preparedness and resilience, and plan for climate change related risk. To implement these actions, the E.O. establishes an interagency Council on Climate Preparedness and Resilience, chaired by the White House and composed of more than 25 agencies, including DOE. The President also establishes a Task Force on Climate Preparedness and Resilience to advise the Administration on how the Federal Government can respond to the needs of communities nationwide that are dealing with the impacts of climate change. The Task Force members include state, local, and tribal leaders from across the country. In a Statement, Secretary Moniz calls the E.O. “an important step forward in our efforts to protect against the anticipated consequences of climate change, helping the Department of Energy and our federal counterparts strengthen partnerships with state, local and tribal communities to build a more resilient energy infrastructure.”

November 1, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration reaffirms the award to Consolidated Nuclear Security, LLC, to be the management and operating contractor for the Y-12 National Security Complex (Y-12) and the Pantex Plant. The contract includes project management of the Uranium Processing Facility at Y-12 and an unexercised option for Savannah River Tritium Operations at the Savannah River Site.

November 4, 2013

The Department announces the successful removal of all remaining highly enriched uranium (HEU) from Hungary. This multi-year international effort coordinated between Hungary, the U.S., the Russian Federation, and the International Atomic Energy Agency removed enough HEU from Hungary for nine nuclear weapons. The final 49.2 kilograms of remaining HEU in Hungary were removed over a series of three secure air shipments during the past six weeks and transported to Russia. Previously, the four participants returned 190 kilograms of HEU from Hungary to Russia via three shipments - in 2008, 2009, and 2012. The material will be downblended into low enriched uranium (LEU) for use in nuclear power reactors. Hungary is the twelfth country to completely eliminate HEU from its borders since 2009. The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration played a major role in the coordinated effort.

November 4, 2013

The second meeting of the U.S.-Japan Bilateral Commission on Civil Nuclear Cooperation is held in Washington, D.C, with Deputy Secretary Poneman and Japan’s Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Shinsuke Sugiyama leading the discussions as Co-Chairs. Established at the U.S.-Japan summit held in April 2012, the Bilateral Commission serves as a standing senior-level forum to foster a comprehensive strategic dialogue and joint activities related to the safe and secure implementation of civil nuclear energy and the response to the accident at the Tokyo Electric Power Company’s (TEPCO) Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Station, including decommissioning and decontamination. The first meeting of the Bilateral Commission was held on July 24, 2012, in Tokyo.

November 4, 2013

The Department’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in partnership with Intel and Cray announce a unique high performance computing (HPC) cluster, termed Catalyst, which will serve research scientists at all three institutions and provide a proving ground for new HPC and Big Data technologies and architectures. The Catalyst resource, a Cray CS300 cluster supercomputer, will be shared between the three partners with access rights based on level of investment. System access will be managed through LLNL's High Performance Computing Innovation Center.

November 4, 2013

The Department’s Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) announces that researchers are now occupying 6,435 square feet of new, modern laboratory and support space at Aiken County’s Applied Research Center, located in the Savannah River Research Campus adjacent to the Savannah River Site. The new space is an expansion of the facility, which houses SRNL’s 24,000 square-foot Hydrogen Technology Research Laboratory, which is used primarily for unclassified research into new gas processing, storage, and transfer applications.

November 5, 2013

Secretary Moniz honors veterans advancing clean energy and climate security at a White House "Champions of Change" event. The Secretary notes DOE's strong commitment to recruiting and hiring veterans. In 2013, veterans represented 25 percent of new DOE hires. He also highlights the strong partnership between DOE and the Department of Defense in developing new energy solutions -- from better batteries to biofuels.

November 5, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces that the Omega Laser Facility, a national user facility for NNSA that is located at and operated by the University of Rochester’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE) in Rochester, New York, recently conducted its 25,000th experiment to create and study extreme states of matter. The Omega Laser Facility is used for high energy density physics research, spanning from fundamental science experiments exploring the birth and death of stars, the hearts of planets, and the mysteries of magnetic reconnection, to inertial confinement fusion ignition, laser-plasma interactions and nuclear weapons research. The 25,000th target shot was a science experiment to study the properties of liquid deuterium at high pressure, which will help scientists figure out how to make fusion work in the laboratory and what is happening in the interior of giant planets like Jupiter and Saturn.

November 5-6, 2013

Representatives from DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), U.K.’s Ministry of Defence, and Russia’s State Atomic Energy Corporation “Rosatom” meet in Lisbon, Portugal, for the Eighth Nuclear Security Best Practices Exchange. The workshop focused on overcoming mutual challenges related to securing nuclear material.

November 6, 2013

President Obama announces his intent to nominate Madelyn Creedon for Principal Deputy Administrator of DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration and Ellen D. Williams for Director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy. Creedon is the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Global Strategic Affairs. Williams is the Chief Scientist for BP.

November 6, 2013

The Department announces eight teams to spur solar power deployment by cutting red tape for residential and small commercial rooftop solar systems. As part of the second round of DOE’s Rooftop Solar Challenge, these teams will receive about $12 million – matched by over $4 million in outside funding – to streamline and standardize solar permitting, zoning, metering, and connection processes for communities across the country. The first round was announced in December 2011.

November 6, 2013

The Department -- in collaboration with the Presidential Innovation Fellows -- launches the American Energy Data Challenge. The first challenge of the four-part series -- the Energy Ideas Challenge -- seeks new ideas for using energy data to create high-value innovative apps, mission-driven services, and insightful knowledge that will contribute to solving real-world issues in the public and private sectors. Three additional challenges -- Apps for Energy II, Energy Data by Design and the American Energy Challenge -- will be rolled out in the coming months.

November 6, 2013

The Department’s Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) announces the winners of the 2013 Federal Energy and Water Management Awards honoring leaders in the federal government who have developed unique ways to conserve energy and improve water and vehicle fleet efficiency.

November 7, 2013

The Department announces the selection of 18 projects across the country to research innovative, second-generation carbon capture technologies for coal-fired power plants. With nearly $84 million in investments from DOE – and additional cost-share from industry, universities, and other research institutions – the projects will support the development of advanced technologies that will help enable efficient, cost-effective application of carbon capture and storage (CCS) processes for new and existing coal-fired power plants.

November 7, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), in partnership with the Russian Federation, has successfully completed the removal of 14 Russian radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) from the Northern Sea Route. These devices, which contain high-activity radioactive sources, powered navigational beacons along Russia’s northern coastline. With this removal, DOE has completed its efforts to recover RTGs along the Northern Sea Route. RTGs were used for many years in Russia to generate electrical power at remote locations, including lighthouses and navigational beacons. The 14 RTGs DOE recently recovered contain more than one million curies of Strontium-90, a high-activity radioisotope that could be used in a dirty bomb.

November 8, 2013

Secretary Moniz, along with Norway’s Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Tord Lien, and Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant, tours the Kemper County Energy Facility in Liberty, Mississippi. The facility is the largest carbon capture and storage (CCS) plant in the country and is part of DOE’s Clean Coal Power Initiative (CCPI).

November 12, 2013

Chief of Staff Kevin Knobloch hosts a press call to discuss the disposal of Consolidated Edison Uranium Solidification Project (uranium-233) waste material at DOE’s Nevada National Security Site. He announces that DOE will begin shipping 403 canisters of highly radioactive nuclear waste in early 2014. Public meetings on this issue will be held in Las Vegas and Pahrump, Nevada.

November 12, 2013

The Department invites the public to read and comment on a draft environmental assessment it has prepared for a proposal to resume transient testing of nuclear fuels and materials at either Idaho National Laboratory or Sandia National Laboratories. Transient testing involves placing fuel or material into the core of a nuclear reactor and subjecting it to short bursts of intense, high-power radiation in order to analyze the effects of the radiation. The resulting information is used to guide the development and improvement of advanced nuclear fuel designs, and to validate computer models of fuel and core behavior required for Nuclear Regulatory Commission evaluation of nuclear power reactor design and safety evaluations.

November 13, 2013

The Department of the Interior (DOI) hosts the 2013 White House Tribal Nations Conference. Secretary Moniz speaks of the importance of the relationship between the Tribal Nations and DOE—a sentiment echoed by DOI Secretary Sally Jewell, who thanks Secretary Moniz for agreeing to lead an interagency effort on Indian Energy through the auspices of the White House Council on Native American Affairs. Senior officials from across DOE participate in pre- and post-conference tribal leader listening sessions as well as six of the eight break-out sessions during the conference.

November 13, 2013

The Department announces the launch of the SUN Project, a collaboration between DOE and the American Indian Science and Engineering Society to engage urban Native American youth in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.

November 14, 2013

Secretary Moniz leads off the White House Forum on Minorities in Energy, featuring speakers from the White House, DOE and other agencies, and the private sector. Launched by DOE in September, the Minorities in Energy initiative addresses the needs of underrepresented community organizations in the energy field and aims to engage more Americans in energy and STEM-related fields.

November 14, 2013

President Obama announces his intent to nominate Marc Kastner for Director of DOE’s Office of Science. Kastner is the Dean of the School of Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

November 14, 2013

The Department announces nine tribal clean energy projects to receive more than $7 million. Highlighted during the 2013 White House Tribal Nations Conference, these awards will help American Indian and Alaska Native tribes deploy clean energy projects – saving these communities money, enhancing their energy security and creating new job and business opportunities.

November 14, 2013

The Department awards a competitive small business set-aside contract to Ma-Chis Lower Creek Indian Tribe Enterprises Inc. of Kinston, Alabama, to provide DOE Transportation Tracking and Communications (TRANSCOM) Technical Support Services. The contract has a value of up to $7.9 million. The DOE TRANSCOM system continuously monitors and tracks active shipments of defense related spent nuclear fuel, unclassified radioactive/non-radioactive, hazardous, and transuranic waste to and from DOE facilities.

November 14, 2013

Secretary Moniz announces the final shipment of low enriched uranium (LEU) derived from Russian weapons-origin highly enriched uranium (HEU) under the 1993 U.S.-Russia HEU Purchase Agreement, commonly known as the Megatons to Megawatts Program. Under this Agreement, Russia downblended 500 metric tons of HEU, equivalent to 20,000 nuclear warheads, into LEU. The resulting LEU has been delivered to the U.S., fabricated into nuclear fuel, and used in nuclear power plants to generate nearly ten percent of all U.S. electricity for the past fifteen years, roughly half of all commercial nuclear energy produced domestically during that time. “For two decades, one in ten light bulbs in America has been powered by nuclear material from Russian nuclear warheads,” says Secretary Moniz. “The completion of this ‘swords to ploughshares’ program represents a major victory both for the United States and Russia.”

November 14, 2013

Secretary Moniz joins President Obama as he tours ArcelorMittal's Cleveland plant where they produce advanced high-strength steel that is helping to improve fuel efficiency in vehicles. The President speaks about the importance of American manufacturing and how commitments to renewable energy and energy efficiency are helping grow the economy and end dependence on foreign oil. The President notes new data from DOE that shows that, for the month of October, the U.S. for the first time since 1995 produced more oil than it imports.

November 15, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces that it recovered high-activity radioactive materials from an oncology clinic in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. NNSA's Global Threat Reduction Initiative (GTRI) and the Mexican National Commission for Nuclear Security and Safeguards jointly supported the removal and the device containing the source was packaged and securely transported to the U.S. for final disposition.

November 16, 2013

President Obama, in his weekly address, discusses progress in American energy and highlights that the U.S. is now producing more oil at home than it buys from other countries for the first time in nearly two decades. We reached this milestone in part, the President notes, not only because we’re producing more energy, but because we’re wasting less energy.

November 18, 2013

The Department’s Office of Science announces that 59 projects have been accepted for the Innovative and Novel Computational Impact on Theory and Experiment (INCITE) program. INCITE enables transformational advances in science and technology for computationally intensive, large-scale research projects through large allocations of computer time and supporting resources at DOE’s Argonne and Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility (LCF) centers. The 59 projects will share nearly 6 billion core hours.

November 19, 2013

President Obama, joined by members of his national security team, hosts a meeting with a bipartisan group of senators to discuss Iran. The President states that achieving a peaceful resolution that prevents Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon is profoundly in America’s national security interest. The initial, 6-month step of the P5+1 proposal would halt progress on the Iranian nuclear program and roll it back in key respects, stopping the advance of the program for the first time in nearly a decade and introducing unprecedented transparency into Iran’s nuclear activities while a long-term, comprehensive solution is negotiated.

November 19, 2013

The Department announces $1.9 million in awards for six research projects as part of a collaborative effort with two Brazilian research organizations to better understand atmospheric and ecological interactions within the Amazon Basin in order to advance climate predictability, both regionally and globally across the tropics.

November 19, 2013

The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, in a suit brought by the nuclear power industry seeking relief from the $750 million in annual fees collected by the Department for disposal of high-level nuclear waste, orders DOE to “submit to Congress a proposal to change the fee to zero.” The issue, the court argues, “Is the government’s failure to conduct an adequate present fee assessment, as required by the statute. Our ruling here does not provide petitioners with any form of compensation, nor does it relieve them of their obligation to ultimately pay for the cost of their waste disposal. When the Secretary is again able to conduct a sufficient assessment, either because the Yucca Mountain project is revived, or because Congress enacts an alternative plan, then payments will resume.”

November 20, 2013

The United Kingdom announces that it will join the U.S. in agreeing to end support for public financing of new coal-fired power plants overseas, except in rare circumstances in which the poorest countries have no feasible alternative. White House spokesperson Caitlin Hayden issues a statement commending the announcement.

November 20, 2013

The Department announces $19 million to reduce both hardware and non-hardware costs of solar and to drive greater solar energy deployment in the U.S. Through the ninth round of the highly successful SunShot Incubator program, DOE is making $10 million available to support and accelerate cutting-edge advancements in solar energy hardware, reductions in soft costs, such as permitting and installation, and the development of pilot manufacturing processes. The Department is also making $9 million available for the Next Generation Photovoltaics III program that will push the limits of PV efficiency, while reducing costs, improving reliability, and creating more secure and sustainable supply chains. The funding will advance foundational research projects, driving technological innovations and planting the seeds for breakthroughs that could lead to mature technologies.

November 20-23, 2013

Secretary Moniz travels to Istanbul, Turkey, and is the keynote speaker at the 5th Atlantic Council Energy Summit. The Secretary also attends the Ministerial meeting on ‘Energy Efficiency for Economic Growth’ with industry leaders, experts, and other government representatives. In addition, he meets with senior Turkish officials on a broad range of global energy issues and holds a Joint Press Conference with Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yıldız.

November 21, 2013

Deputy Secretary Poneman joins with officials from Clemson University to dedicate the nation’s largest and one of the world’s most advanced wind energy testing facilities in North Charleston, S.C. Led by Clemson University’s Restoration Institute, the facility will help test and validate new turbines, particularly for offshore wind – helping to speed deployment of next generation energy technology. Supported by a $47 million DOE investment as well as about $60 million in outside funding, the facility is equipped with two testing bays – for up to 7.5-megawatt and 15-megawatt drivetrains.

November 21-22, 2013

The Generation IV International Forum, formed in 2001 to facilitate international collaboration on the development of Generation IV nuclear energy systems, holds its 36th Policy Group meeting in Brussels, Belgium.

November 22, 2013

Fisker Automotive, recipient of a $528.7 million conditional loan hybrids under DOE’s Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) Loan program, files for bankruptcy reorganization. The Department announces that it will lose $139 million on the loan. “While this result is not what anyone hoped,” a DOE official notes, “the $192 million disbursed to Fisker minus the $53 million recovered by the Department represents less than two percent of our advanced vehicle loans, and less than one half of one percent of our overall loan program portfolio.”

November 22, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces that it recently successfully recovered a disused, high-activity cesium-137 source from Massachusetts General Hospital in downtown Boston and transported it for permanent disposition. Formerly used as a research irradiator for medical studies, the device contained cesium-137, which could be used in a dirty bomb.

November 23, 2013

Negotiations in Geneva with Iran on its nuclear program result in a six-month freeze designed to give negotiators more time to draft a comprehensive accord. President Obama issues a statement on the first step agreement on Iran's nuclear program. “For the first time in nearly a decade,” the President says, “we have halted the progress of the Iranian nuclear program, and key parts of the program will be rolled back. Iran has committed to halting certain levels of enrichment and neutralizing part of its stockpiles. Iran cannot use its next-generation centrifuges, which are used for enriching uranium. Iran cannot install or start up new centrifuges, and its production of centrifuges will be limited. Iran will halt work at its plutonium reactor. And new inspections will provide extensive access to Iran’s nuclear facilities and allow the international community to verify whether Iran is keeping its commitments. These are substantial limitations which will help prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon. . . . Meanwhile, this first step will create time and space over the next six months for more negotiations to fully address our comprehensive concerns about the Iranian program.” The White House issues a fact sheet, and senior administration officials provide a background briefing.

November 25, 2013

The Department announces up to $30 million in Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E) funding for a new program focused on the development of electrochemical technologies to enable low-cost distributed power generation. The Reliable Electricity Based on ELectrochemical Systems (REBELS) program will develop fuel cell technology for distributed power generation to improve grid stability, increase energy security, and balance intermittent renewable technologies while reducing CO2 emissions associated with current distributed generation systems. ARPA-E encourages outstanding scientists and engineers from different organizations, scientific disciplines, and technology sectors to form new project teams for REBELS applications and projects.

November 25, 2013

The Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces the award of a cooperative agreement that accelerates the dual objectives of eliminating the use of proliferation-sensitive highly enriched uranium (HEU) in the production of medical isotopes and establishing reliable domestic supplies of Molybdenum-99 (Mo-99) to meet U.S. patient needs. Mo-99 is used frequently in common medical diagnostic procedures. The cooperative agreement with NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes, LLC provides support toward NorthStar’s Mo-99 production capability using neutron-capture technology, which it is pursuing in partnership with the University of Missouri Research Reactor. The award of this cooperative agreement, for which NNSA will contribute $10.9 million, is matched under a cost-share arrangement with NorthStar.

November 26, 2013

The Department awards nearly $4 million to 13 states to increase statewide energy savings and boost the energy efficiency of public institutions, local governments, and industrial sectors. The awards are for advancing industrial energy efficiency, supporting energy efficiency action in states, and retrofitting public buildings.

November 26, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General (IG), in its annual Special Report on management challenges at DOE, finds that the list of challenges for 2014 remains "largely consistent" with that of 2013. These include: operational efficiency and cost savings, contract and financial assistance award management, cyber security, environmental cleanup, human capital management, nuclear waste disposal, safeguards and security, and stockpile stewardship. Energy supply, defined as achieving a stable and reliable energy supply system and on the list since 2007, has been removed since “these matters have evolved and the area has been subsumed into other management challenge categories.”  The annual “watch list” consisting of significant issues that do not meet the threshold of a management challenge but warrant special attention by DOE officials, includes infrastructure modernization, the loan guarantee program, and worker and community safety.

November 27, 2013

The Department’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability (OE) releases its “Assessment of the Adequacy of Natural Gas Pipeline Capacity in the Northeast United States” report. The report follows up on a similar assessment done in 2005-06. Since 2006, there have been significant changes to the Northeast gas market. Chief among these has been the rapid growth of gas production from the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania and new pipeline and processing infrastructure expansions associated with that growth. In light of these changes, OE has conducted a new assessment to determine how these changes may have affected the ability of the interstate pipeline system to meet natural gas demand for “essential human needs” in the event of a disruption in pipeline capacity.

November 27, 2013

The Department announces that it will open negotiations with Global Laser Enrichment (GLE) for the sale of the depleted uranium hexafluoride inventory at the Paducah site. GLE proposed licensing, constructing, and operating a new laser enrichment facility that could potentially provide significant compensation to DOE for its depleted uranium hexafluoride inventories. The Department also decided to enter into negotiations with AREVA for the off-specification uranium hexafluoride inventory. The AREVA proposal utilizes its nuclear fuel fabrication facility in Richland, Washington, to process the off-specification uranium hexafluoride as blend stock for domestic nuclear reactor fuel.

December 2, 2013

Deputy Secretary Poneman and South African Minister of Energy Benedict Martins meet in Washington, DC, for the fourth U.S.-South African Energy Dialogue, together with representatives of supporting U.S. and South African agencies. They reaffirm the strong ongoing energy development in both nations -- including shale gas, civilian nuclear energy, renewable energy and energy efficiency --to meet shared energy and climate goals, and the important role of private trade and investment in achieving those goals.

December 3, 2013

The Department and the Department of Housing and Urban Development expand the Better Buildings Challenge to include multifamily housing such as apartments and condominiums and launch the Better Buildings Accelerators to support state and local government-led efforts to cut energy waste and eliminate market and technical barriers to greater building efficiency. Through the Challenge expansion, 50 multifamily partners – representing roughly 200,000 units and over 190 million square feet – have committed to cutting their energy use by 20 percent in ten years. The Accelerators program will develop streamlined approaches to help building owners access whole-building energy use data, encourage performance-based contracts to help to drive economic development, utilize private sector innovation, and increase efficiency at minimum cost, and institute a superior energy performance (SEP) certification program to verify energy efficiency improvements and practices. The Obama Administration also announces it will challenge Federal agencies to further expand their use of performance-based contracts through 2016 to upgrade the energy efficiency of Federal buildings at no cost to taxpayers.

December 3, 2013

The Department and the Environmental Protection Agency release the 2014 Fuel Economy Guide, providing consumers with a valuable resource to identify and choose the most fuel efficient and low greenhouse gas emitting vehicles that meet their needs.

December 3, 2013

Secretary Moniz opens the second meeting of the reconstituted Secretary of Energy Advisory Board held at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

December 4, 2013

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announces that the Department of Agriculture (USDA) will take new steps to save consumers money on their energy bills in partnership with rural electric cooperatives. USDA plans to provide rural electric cooperatives up to $250 million to lend to business and residential customers for energy efficiency improvements and renewable energy systems.

December 5, 2013

President Obama signs a Memorandum directing the Federal Government to consume 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020 – more than double the current level. The memorandum challenges federal agencies to lead by example and instructs them to incorporate the “Green Button” data standard into their energy management practices.

December 6, 2013

The Department announces nearly $10 million to support research, development, and manufacturing of solid-state lighting (SSL) technologies across the country. This funding will help accelerate the development of high-quality light-emitting diode (LED) and organic light-emitting diode (OLED) products with the potential to reduce lighting energy use for American families and businesses by one half.

December 6, 2013

The Department's Office of Inspector General issues a Special Report on DOE's July 2013 cyber security breach that resulted in the compromise of a variety of personally identifiable information (PII) on over 104,000 individuals. The report identifies a number of technical and management issues that contributed to an environment in which the breach was possible. It also identifies numerous contributing factors related to inadequate management processes and finds that the extent of PII stolen was much more extensive than that originally reported by DOE. These issues created an environment in which cyber security weaknesses could go undetected and/or uncorrected. While the report does not identify a single point of failure that led to the breach, the combination of the technical and managerial problems set the stage for individuals with malicious intent to access the system with what appeared to be relative ease.

December 10, 2013

Secretary Moniz and State Corporation for Nuclear Energy (Rosatom) Director General Sergey Kirienko issue a Joint Statement following talks in Washington, D.C., about the future of U.S.-Russia collaborative work in the nuclear energy field, including nuclear research and development, commercial aspects of cooperation, nuclear safety, and nonproliferation. The meeting coincides with the arrival of the final shipment of low enriched uranium (LEU) at the Port of Baltimore from Russia. The shipment was the last of the LEU converted from more than 500 metric tons of weapons-origin highly enriched uranium (HEU) downblended from roughly 20,000 dismantled Russian nuclear warheads and shipped to the U.S. to fuel U.S. nuclear reactors, supplying nearly ten percent of all U.S. electricity over the past fifteen years. White House spokesperson Caitlin Hayden issues a statement on the completion of the U.S. – Russia “Megatons to Megawatts” program.

December 11, 2013

The Department announces over $13 million for five projects to strengthen domestic solar manufacturing and speed commercialization of efficient, affordable photovoltaic and concentrating solar power technologies. Matched by over $14 million in private cost share, DOE’s investment will help five companies in California, Colorado, Georgia, Pennsylvania, and Oregon develop cost-effective manufacturing processes for photovoltaic and concentrating solar power technologies.

December 11, 2013

The Department announces new awards of more than $1 million to three states to advance clean energy manufacturing in their regions. Michigan, North Carolina, and Washington will develop roadmaps that will create or build upon public and private partnerships to foster private-sector capacity in clean energy manufacturing and services. Additionally, each will partner with neighboring state governments and organizations to develop long-term policies to increase clean energy manufacturing activity in their regions.

December 11, 2013

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) issues its annual review of the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) funding to modernize and refurbish the nuclear security enterprise. The GAO finds that NNSA’s total budget estimates for modernizing the nuclear security enterprise for fiscal years 2014 through 2031 have increased by about $19 billion overall when compared with the estimates in the agency’s fiscal year 2012 budget materials, with most of the increase occurring in fiscal year 2019 and beyond.

December 12, 2013

The Department hosts the first American Energy and Manufacturing Competitiveness (AEMC) Summit in Washington, D.C. Part of a three-year partnership with the Council on Competitiveness to advance U.S. leadership in clean energy manufacturing, the AEMC Summit brings together leaders to address the shifting landscape of manufacturing and energy production in America. Secretary Moniz opens the summit, setting the day for a series of panel discussions on the challenges and opportunities in U.S. manufacturing. Leaders from industry, government, academia, labor, and DOE’s National Laboratories talk about how companies remain competitive in the global economy -- covering everything from ways to increase manufacturing energy efficiency to what the government can do to create a resurgence in manufacturing.

December 12, 2013

Secretary Moniz announces, at DOE’s American Energy and Manufacturing Competitiveness Summit, $150 million in clean energy tax credits to build U.S. capabilities in clean energy manufacturing. The Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit program (48C Program) authorizes the Department of Treasury to provide developers with an investment tax credit of 30 percent for the manufacture of particular types of energy equipment. Funded at $2.3 billion, the tax credit was made available to 183 domestic clean energy manufacturing facilities during Phase I of the program in 2009. Phase II utilizes $150 million in tax credits that were not used by the previous awardees and support projects that must be placed in service by 2017. Phase II awards include domestic manufacturing of a wide range of renewable energy and energy efficiency products from hydropower and wind energy to smart grid technologies to fuel efficient vehicles.

December 12, 2013

Secretary Moniz releases DOE’s Grid Energy Storage report to the members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. The report was commissioned at the request of Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), Committee Chairman. The report identifies the benefits of grid energy storage, the challenges that must be addressed to enable broader use, and the efforts of DOE, in conjunction with industry and other government organizations, to meet those challenges. The report identifies four challenges that must be addressed to enable energy storage: the development of cost-effective energy storage technologies, validated reliability and safety, an equitable regulatory environment, and industry acceptance. The need for energy storage in the electric grid is increasing as a result of the growing use of renewable power generation, which varies with wind and solar conditions, and increasing frequency of severe weather caused by climate change. The grid’s evolution toward more distributed energy systems and the incorporation of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids also contributes to the growing interest in grid storage.

December 12, 2013

The Department publishes a solicitation making up to $8 billion in loan guarantee authority available to support innovative advanced fossil energy projects that avoid, reduce, or sequester greenhouse gases.  Authorized by Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, loan guarantees under this new solicitation will help provide critical financing to support new or significantly improved advanced fossil energy projects – such as advanced resource development, carbon capture, low-carbon power systems, and efficiency improvements – that reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, methane, and other greenhouse gas pollution.

December 12, 2013

The Department announces an award to NuScale Power LLC to support a new project to design, certify, and help commercialize innovative small modular reactors (SMRs) in the U.S. The project represents a significant investment in first-of-a-kind engineering and design certification for small modular reactors in the U.S. Through a five-year cost-share agreement, DOE will invest up to half of the total project cost, with the project’s industry partners matching this investment by at least one-to-one. The specific total will be negotiated between DOE and NuScale and will be derived from the total $452 million identified for DOE’s Small Modular Reactor Licensing Technical Support program. The DOE investment will help NuScale obtain Nuclear Regulatory Commission design certification and achieve commercial operation around 2025, while providing innovative and effective solutions for enhanced reactor safety, operations and performance.

December 12, 2013

The Departments of Agriculture and Energy announce $8 million in research grants to develop non-food feedstocks that can be used for bioenergy. The projects are designed to improve biomass to be grown for biofuels—including selected trees and grasses—by increasing their yield, quality, and ability to adapt to extreme environments.

December 12, 2013

The Department’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory announces that the lab and Princeton University have launched a new center to study the volatile heliosphere — a complex and frequently violent region of space that encompasses the solar system. This region is carved out by the solar wind — charged plasma particles that constantly stream from the sun — and gives rise to space weather that can disrupt cell phone service, damage satellites and knock out power grids. The newly formed Princeton Center for Heliospheric Physics aims to sharpen the capacity to predict solar eruptions and to deepen understanding of the plasma flows and magnetic forces that emanate from the sun.

December 13, 2013

The Department issues the first in a series of Records of Decision (RODs) pursuant to the Final Tank Closure and Waste Management Environmental Impact Statement for the Hanford Site. The ROD pertains to each of the three main areas analyzed in the EIS: tank closure, decommissioning of the Fast Flux Test Facility, and waste management. The decision includes retrieval of 99 percent of the waste currently stored in Hanford’s 177 underground storage tanks, landfill closure of the single-shell tank farm systems, and operation and maintenance of the tank farms. For the Fast Flux Test Facility, above-grade structures would be removed and below-grade structures would be entombed. To improve waste management at the site, existing facilities would be upgraded, low-level and mixed low-level radioactive waste from Hanford would be disposed of in an Integrated Disposal Facility, and an additional disposal facility for tank closure waste would be constructed, as needed. DOE will continue to defer the importation of offsite waste at Hanford, at least until the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant is operational.

December 16, 2013

The Department announces that it is extending Mission Support Alliance’s (MSA) contract for infrastructure and site services at the Hanford Site by three years. In 2009, following a competitive bid, DOE awarded MSA a cost-plus-award-fee contract valued at approximately $3 billion for up to 10 years, with a five-year base period. The Department is exercising the first of two options for extension. The contract has been extended through May 2017 for approximately $736 million.

December 16, 2013

The Department’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) releases its Annual Energy Outlook 2014 (AEO2014) Reference case, with updated projections for U.S. energy markets through 2040. “EIA's updated Reference case shows that advanced technologies for crude oil and natural gas production are continuing to increase domestic supply and reshape the U.S. energy economy as well as expand the potential for U.S. natural gas exports,” says EIA Administrator Adam Sieminski. “Growing domestic hydrocarbon production is also reducing our net dependence on imported oil and benefiting the U.S. economy as natural-gas-intensive industries boost their output.” The outlook projects that natural gas will overtake coal to provide the largest share of U.S. electric power generation. In 2040, natural gas accounts for 35% of total electricity generation, while coal accounts for 32%. Generation from renewable fuels, unlike coal and nuclear power, is higher in the 2014 outlook than the 2013.

December 16, 2013

USEC, which leases and operates DOE’s Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, announces that it will file for bankruptcy early in 2014.

December 17, 2013

The Department announces more than $7 million for projects developing and deploying advanced hydrogen and fuel cell technologies. The investment across four projects in Georgia, Kansas, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee will help further reduce the cost of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies, expand fueling infrastructure, and build a strong domestic supply chain in the U.S.

December 18, 2013

The Senate passes the U.S.-Mexico Transboundary Hydrocarbons Agreement as a part of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013. The agreement establishes a framework to explore, develop, and share revenue from hydrocarbon resources that lie in waters beyond each country’s exclusive, economic zones. The House passed the budget act on December 10. White House spokesperson Caitlin Hayden issues a statement.

December 19, 2013

The Department releases three new reports showcasing strong growth across the U.S. fuel cell and hydrogen technologies market. According to these reports, the U.S. continues to be one of the world’s largest and fastest growing markets for fuel cell and hydrogen technologies. The 2012 Fuel Cell Technologies Market Report highlights continued growth in fuel cell commercial deployments, with U.S. fuel cell shipments growing from 1,000 units in 2008 to nearly 5,000 units in 2012 and domestic manufacturing increasing by more than 60 percent from 2011 to 2012. The States of the States, Fuel Cells in America 2013 report – looks at leadership among U.S. states in fuel cell manufacturing and deployment, recognizing in particular California, Connecticut, New York, Ohio, and South Carolina. The Pathways to Commercial Success: Technologies and Products Supported by the Fuel Cell Technologies Office report details how DOE's fuel cell research and development efforts over the last decade have helped manufacture about 40 new commercial technologies in the U.S, support 65 new technologies that are expected to reach commercial-scale within the next three to five years, and issue more than 450 U.S. patents.

December 19, 2013

The Department announces that its contractor URS|CH2M Oak Ridge, LLC, or UCOR, has completed demolition of the K-25 gaseous diffusion building, the largest facility in the DOE complex. UCOR took over the project in 2011 and has maintained a strong safety record while completing the demolition over one year ahead of its current schedule and approximately $300 million under the current budget. All debris removal is expected to be completed in spring 2014. The K-25 building, located at the East Tennessee Technology Park formerly known as the Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant, was built in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project, at the time, was the world’s largest building under one roof.

December 19, 2013

The Department announces that Savannah River Remediation, the liquid waste contractor at DOE’s Savannah River Site, has removed from service two more Cold War-era liquid radioactive waste tanks, marking the third and fourth tanks operationally closed by SRR in the last 14 months. Grouting and closure of Tanks 5 and 6 were completed approximately two years ahead of schedule. Tanks 5 and 6 were constructed in the early 1950s and placed into service in 1959 and 1964, respectively. Both were used as receipt tanks for waste from the F Canyon separations operations, each holding approximately 730,000 gallons of hazardous waste.

December 19, 2013

The Department announces that San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) has won the second phase of the Smart Grid Data Access funding opportunity. SDG&E will receive an award of approximately $2 million to fully adopt its innovative program designed to get customers more involved in their own energy consumption. Additionally, SDG&E has committed to providing $2.33 million funding for the phase II effort, bringing the total value of the Phase II project to $4.3 million.

December 19, 2013

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office issues a report examining the unintended effects on the competitiveness of U.S firms of an economy-wide policy, such as a carbon tax or a cap-and-trade program, which would reduce emissions by imposing a price on them. These could make emission-intensive U.S. products less competitive and increase emissions overseas. Import tariffs related to emissions could reduce those effects but would be hard to implement.

December 23, 2013

President Obama names 102 researchers as recipients of the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers, the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. Government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers. Thirteen of the awardees are employed or funded by DOE.

December 23, 2013

The Department announces non-regulatory energy efficiency standards for pay-TV set-top boxes that will result in significant energy savings for more than 90 million U.S. homes. These new standards – developed through a non-regulatory agreement between the pay-TV industry, the consumer electronics industry, and energy efficiency advocates – will improve set-top box efficiency by 10 to 45 percent (depending on box type) by 2017 and are expected to save more than $1 billion on consumer energy bills annually.

December 26, 2013

President Obama signs into law H.R. 3304, the “National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014,” which authorizes fiscal year 2014 appropriations for DOE and other executive branch national security programs. The President also signs into law H.J. Res. 59, the “Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013,” which revises discretionary spending caps for fiscal years 2014 and 2015.

December 27, 2013

The Department of State submits to the White House the 2013 U.S.–Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission Joint Report highlighting the Commission’s accomplishments. The Commission’s Energy Working Group is co-chaired by Secretary Moniz and Russian Minister of Energy Alexander Novak, and the Nuclear Energy and Nuclear Security Working Group is co-chaired by Deputy Secretary Poneman and Director General of the Rosatom State Corporation Sergey Kiriyenko.