The U.S. Department of Energy is making $16 million available to develop long-term economical solutions for the transportation of high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) through the development of new transportation packages or the modification of existing packages.
The NRC has licensed/certified several transportation packages to support the transportation of HALEU. Transportation packages designed for HEU (20% and up) could also be used for transporting HALEU, but only in small quantities — drastically increasing the cost and number of containers required. DOE is working to support industry efforts to develop additional new or updated transportation packages to support the transportation of large quantities of HALEU.
To support package concepts based on existing package designs or in development and support fundamentally new package designs, DOE has identified two topic areas for application.
- Topic Area 1:
- Applications for NRC certification of new package design concepts.
- DOE intends this topic for concepts that will likely require sufficient award duration and funding to achieve cost competitive, economically viable transportation packages.
- Topic Area 2:
- Applications for NRC certification of modification to existing design packages.
- DOE intends this topic for concepts that are further along in the development and require less time and costs associated with achieving NRC certificate of compliance (CoC).
Awards under Topic Area 1 will have a performance period of up to three years, while awards made under Topic Area 2 will have a performance period of up to two years.
The application deadline closed on February 14, 2025.