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The United States government has selected five companies, including nuclear energy firm Oklo and Franco-Italian small modular reactor specialist Newcleo, to enter advanced negotiations over potentially using its Cold War-era plutonium as nuclear reactor fuel, according to an announcement by the US Department of Energy reported on by Al Jazeera and France 24.

The plan, first reported by Reuters last year, would make about 20 metric tonnes of plutonium from dismantled nuclear warheads available to US power companies. The Department of Energy holds surplus plutonium at heavily guarded weapons facilities in states including South Carolina, Texas and New Mexico, according to Al Jazeera. The plutonium has a half-life of 24,000 years and must be handled with protective gear, Al Jazeera reported.

Coverage comparison

The two outlets covering this story approached it from different angles. Al Jazeera emphasized the formal process — the Department of Energy's announcement of advanced talks — and contextualized the scale of the proposal against the backdrop of the roughly 99 tons of plutonium stored at secure sites. France 24 focused more on the involvement of nuclear start-ups and framed the plan as a response to growing electricity demand from the AI industry, a hypothesis that none of the sources directly attributed to a named official.

Neither outlet reported that a final agreement has been reached; both indicated that the selected companies must prove they can safely handle and transport the highly unstable radioactive material. The plan's revival comes after decades of failed attempts to find a solution for the stockpiles, with France 24 noting that a previous US-Russia effort to use the plutonium as fuel was abandoned during Barack Obama's second term.

Key Claims

  • The US Department of Energy holds surplus plutonium at heavily guarded sites in South Carolina, Texas, and New Mexico, according to Al Jazeera.
  • Five companies, including Newcleo, will enter "advanced negotiations" with US authorities to use a portion of the 99 tons of plutonium, per France 24.
  • The Trump administration plans to make about 20 metric tonnes of plutonium from dismantled warheads available to US power companies, as reported by Reuters and reiterated by Al Jazeera.
  • Twenty metric tonnes of weapons-usable plutonium is enough for approximately 2,000 nuclear bombs, according to a letter from Senator Edward Markey and Representatives Don Beyer and John Garamendi, as cited by Al Jazeera.
  • Neither outlet reported that a final agreement has been reached.

Perspectives

The announcement has been met with a mix of support and concern. Proponents, presumably within the administration and the nuclear industry, see the plan as a way to dispose of costly stockpiles while fueling advanced nuclear technologies. Al Jazeera noted that Trump's May 2025 executive order halted much of a program to dilute and dispose of surplus plutonium, redirecting it instead toward reactor fuel. This move was reportedly opposed by some Democrats, though the administration appears to view public-private partnerships as a solution to a decades-long storage and disposal challenge.

Critics, however, raise serious safety and security flags. In a September letter, a group of Democratic lawmakers argued that the plan "raises serious weapons proliferation concerns, makes little economic sense, and may adversely affect the nation's defense posture." Non-proliferation experts quoted by France 24 warn that the use of plutonium as fuel could increase the risk of nuclear proliferation, though the outlet did not provide a direct quote from a specific expert in the article. The process would require the safe handling and transport of a highly sensitive material, a point acknowledged by both outlets.

France 24 also reported that the previous disposal plan — burying the plutonium in New Mexico — was abandoned due to cost and complexity during the Biden administration. Whether private companies can succeed where governments have faltered remains to be seen.