The U.S. Department of Energy's National Reactor Innovation Center (NRIC) has selected 13 projects from 12 developers for the second round of its Nuclear Energy Launch Pad, the privately funded, DOE-authorized build pathway that replaced the 2025 Reactor and Fuel Line Pilot Programs. Eight are new to DOE's fast track, and the roster now reaches into uranium conversion and enrichment.
Key facts
- NRIC announced on Aug. 24 that 12 developers and 13 projects were chosen from applications filed against a July 8 first-round deadline; the request for applications stays open and further selections will be made "on a rolling basis as resources allow."
- Eight of the 12 — Atlas Atomics, Forge Atomics, Hexium, Lightbridge, Nusano, Raven-Flint Nuclear, Scaled Atomics and Sublime Nuclear — have never before been selected for a DOE pilot program or the Launch Pad. The other four (Antares, Deployable Energy, Oklo, Valar) have all already reached criticality under DOE authorization.
- NRIC Chief Operating Officer Josh Gillespie says six of the projects will be located in Idaho: "three reactor demonstrations… a fuel enrichment… a fuel fabricator, and… a fuel converter."
- Counting the four projects selected in April (Deployable Energy, General Matter, NuCube Energy with Idaho State University, and Radiant), the Launch Pad now holds 17 projects across two rounds.
- Launch Pad INL is an approximately 2,000-acre site near INL's Central Facilities Area, and DOE provides no funding: participants pay for authorization reviews, program-manager support and site services.
What happened
The INL release names the companies but not the projects. It says the selections "include reactor development and nuclear fuel cycle advancements, including fabrication, enrichment and conversion technologies," and that the developers "can begin working with NRIC to execute the enhanced technical, regulatory and deployment support available through the Launch Pad initiative." Projects not chosen "are welcome to revise their submissions and reapply in future rounds."
NRIC Director Brad Tomer framed the award as a pipeline signal: the Launch Pad "gives these developers a prioritized pathway to the DOE authorization process, and access to subject matter experts, facilities, and regulatory support tailored to their needs." Josh Jarrell, DOE's deputy assistant secretary for the nuclear fuel cycle, said the projects "reflect real progress on fabrication, enrichment and conversion technologies," and Chimi Zacot, acting deputy assistant secretary for nuclear reactors, said the round "proves those efforts weren't a one-time success."
The release's silence on project detail is partly filled by the companies and local reporting. POWER reports Deployable Energy's two selections cover "a full-power demonstration at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and a maritime demonstration." Raven-Flint Nuclear says on its website that its 500 tU-per-year Torch fluorine-free uranium conversion pilot plant "will be located at Idaho National Laboratory." Scaled Atomics said in a LinkedIn post, quoted by ANS, that selection lets it move its container-sized MN-350 microreactor "from advanced design toward demonstration and commercial deployment." Oklo, in a post on X on Aug. 25, said it had "advanced three projects through the original Reactor Pilot Program" and that the selection "builds on what Groves demonstrated" — without naming the project selected.
Who was selected
| Developer | Technology | Prior DOE fast-track status | Known about the Launch Pad project |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antares Nuclear | TRISO-fueled transportable microreactor; Mark-0 reached criticality at INL on June 4 | Reactor Pilot Program | Not disclosed; company closed a $470 million Series C in July |
| Atlas Atomics | Heavy-water reactor concept for baseload power and isotopes | First-time entrant | Not disclosed |
| Deployable Energy (2 projects) | 1-MWe Unity microreactor; critical at INL on June 30 | Launch Pad round one (April) | Full-power demonstration at INL plus a maritime demonstration, per POWER |
| Forge Atomics | Ember, a factory-built 25-MWe pressurized water reactor | First-time entrant | Not disclosed |
| Hexium | Laser isotope separation, initially lithium-6 and lithium-7 | First-time entrant | Not disclosed |
| Lightbridge | Uranium-zirconium metallic fuel under irradiation testing at INL's Advanced Test Reactor | First-time entrant | Not disclosed |
| Nusano | Accelerator-based isotope producer with a centrifuge-free HALEU process | First-time entrant | Not disclosed |
| Oklo | Sodium fast reactors, HALEU fuel fabrication, recycling, isotopes; Groves critical in Texas on Aug. 5 | Reactor Pilot Program (three projects) and Fuel Line Pilot Program | Not disclosed |
| Raven-Flint Nuclear | Fluorine-free uranium conversion (yellowcake to UF₆) | First-time entrant | 500 tU/yr Torch pilot plant at INL, per company |
| Scaled Atomics | MN-350 mobile microreactor in a 20-foot container | First-time entrant | MN-350 demonstration, per company |
| Sublime Nuclear | Modular uranium conversion; founded 2026 | First-time entrant | Not disclosed |
| Valar Atomics | High-temperature gas reactor; Ward 250 critical in Utah on June 18 | Reactor Pilot Program and Fuel Line Pilot Program | Not disclosed |
Why it matters
The first thing the round changes is scope. The 2025 pilot programs took reactors and fuel fabrication. This list adds two uranium converters (Raven-Flint, Sublime), an enrichment technology developer (Hexium), an isotope maker with a HALEU process (Nusano) and a fuel designer (Lightbridge) — the front end of the fuel cycle that the reactor demonstrations of June and July all depend on. Tomer said in April that the Launch Pad would broaden "beyond reactor and fuel technologies to welcome a wider range of nuclear technologies and applications"; this is the first roster that shows it.
The second is what DOE authorization does and does not buy. Everything built under the Launch Pad operates under DOE's safety framework rather than a Nuclear Regulatory Commission license, which is why timelines have been short: INL says Deployable Energy's Unity reactor received approval of its safety analysis in 106 days and reached criticality about 150 days after kickoff. But NRIC's own FAQ is explicit that "commercial sales of enriched product is not permitted under DOE Authorization," that any nuclear material produced for sale "must be licensed by the NRC," and that delivering DOE-authorized fuel even to the same developer's NRC-licensed plant "constitutes transfer into the commercial regulatory framework." For the conversion and enrichment newcomers, the Launch Pad is a place to prove a process, not a route to revenue. The NRC license still has to be earned separately.
The third is money. Per the FAQ, "all Launch Pad work is entirely privately funded," land at INL is "leased from DOE at fair-market value," developers fund their own connections to power, water and fiber, and they must cover decommissioning and spent-fuel management until DOE negotiates a disposition contract. Gillespie described the INL site as being built "similar to a subdivision," with roads and utilities going in so developers can lease a plot and "build their own facilities at their own cost." Selection is a permission slip and a queue position with lab support attached. It is not a grant, and readers should discount any developer messaging that treats it as one.
Background
The Launch Pad descends from Executive Order 14301 of May 2025, which told DOE to approve at least three reactors under a new pilot program "with the goal of achieving criticality in each of the three reactors by July 4, 2026." DOE launched the Reactor Pilot Program in June 2025 and the Fuel Line Pilot Program that August, then on March 5, 2026 established the Launch Pad — with 11 reactor projects and nine fuel projects then enrolled in the two pilots — as their successor, offering "2,000+ acres" at INL and a nationwide Launch Pad USA track. The first four participants were transitioned from the pilot applicant pool on April 27; the open RFA followed on April 29 with a July 8 deadline and selections anticipated by Aug. 19. They arrived five days late.
The pilot programs delivered. NNN covered DOE's tally of four advanced reactors reaching criticality by July 4 and Oklo's Groves reactor becoming the fifth on Aug. 5. Radiant, a first-round Launch Pad participant, is preparing its Kaleidos reactor for the DOME microreactor test bed at INL, which also runs its own standalone solicitation.
Two things the Launch Pad is not. It is not Project Prometheus, the INL-led Genesis Mission effort to apply AI to reactor design and licensing; that program is software and data, while the Launch Pad is land, authorization and lab services for physical builds, although companies such as Oklo sit in both. And it is not DOE's Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus competition, whose five finalist states were named in July; the FAQ calls the two "independent initiatives," though a developer may take part in both. For the mechanics — the OTA and SPP agreements, the DOE-STD-1271 safety gates, the two pathways and the full participant roster — see NNN's Nuclear Energy Launch Pad explainer. Our SMR hub tracks the reactor designs involved.
What's next
Selection starts a negotiation, not construction. Each developer must execute an Other Transaction Agreement with DOE's Idaho Operations Office and, for INL projects, a Strategic Partnership Project agreement with Battelle Energy Alliance; the FAQ says access to Launch Pad resources "begins after selection and is dependent on successful execution" of both. Parcels at INL are allocated only after selection, and foreign-ownership reviews for companies with overseas investors "may take up to six months." Expect a gap of months before most of the 13 projects have a signed agreement, a plot and a Nuclear Safety Design Agreement — the first gate in DOE's authorization sequence.
The near-term markers to watch are which six projects NRIC confirms for the INL site, whether Deployable Energy names a vessel partner and a date for its maritime demonstration, when Raven-Flint's Torch plant breaks ground, and which of Oklo's fuel, recycling or reactor lines the selection actually covers. NRIC says further selections will follow on a rolling basis; applicants rejected this round can revise and refile. Whether any second-round project reaches an operating milestone as fast as Unity did will tell the industry whether the pilot-program pace was a one-off or the new baseline.
Questions
- What is the Nuclear Energy Launch Pad?
- A DOE initiative run by the National Reactor Innovation Center at Idaho National Laboratory that gives privately funded reactor and fuel-cycle developers a prioritized path to DOE authorization, lab expertise and, at INL, leased land on a roughly 2,000-acre site. DOE provides no funding.
- Which companies were selected in the August 2026 Launch Pad round?
- Antares Nuclear, Atlas Atomics, Deployable Energy (two projects), Forge Atomics, Hexium, Lightbridge, Nusano, Oklo, Raven-Flint Nuclear, Scaled Atomics, Sublime Nuclear and Valar Atomics — 12 developers and 13 projects.
- Does DOE pay for Launch Pad projects?
- No. NRIC's FAQ says all Launch Pad work is privately funded. Participants pay for DOE authorization reviews, NRIC program-manager support and any INL site services; land at INL is leased at fair-market value and developers fund their own utility connections.
- How many of the new projects will be built at Idaho National Laboratory?
- Six, according to NRIC Chief Operating Officer Josh Gillespie: three reactor demonstrations, a fuel enrichment project, a fuel fabricator and a fuel converter. NRIC has not said which companies those are.
- How is the Launch Pad different from the Reactor Pilot Program?
- The 2025 Reactor and Fuel Line Pilot Programs covered reactors and fuel fabrication and closed to applications in April 2026. The Launch Pad absorbed them, opened to enrichment, conversion, recycling and other nuclear technologies, and runs on a continuously open request for applications.
Sources
- NRIC selects new Nuclear Energy Launch Pad participants to boost nuclear energy — Idaho National Laboratory
- Nuclear Energy Launch Pad at Idaho National Laboratory — National Reactor Innovation Center
- Launch Pad INL — National Reactor Innovation Center
- Nuclear Energy Launch Pad RFA — Frequently Asked Questions — National Reactor Innovation Center
- National Reactor Innovation Center announces first selections for Nuclear Energy Launch Pad — Idaho National Laboratory
- NRIC Launch Pad to take national innovation to next level — Idaho National Laboratory
- America built nuclear power in Idaho first. Now it's doing it again. — Idaho National Laboratory
- Office of Nuclear Energy celebrates fifth advanced reactor criticality — U.S. Department of Energy
- U.S. Department of Energy Reactor Pilot Program — U.S. Department of Energy
- Executive Order 14301 — Reforming Nuclear Reactor Testing at the Department of Energy — Federal Register
- INL building up 2,000-acre Nuclear Energy Launch Pad in Idaho desert — Local News 8 (KIFI)
- Second round of Launch Pad selections includes eight newcomers — American Nuclear Society — Nuclear Newswire
- NRIC adds 13 projects to Nuclear Energy Launch Pad, expanding advanced reactor and fuel cycle pipeline — POWER Magazine
- Raven-Flint Nuclear — Torch pilot plant and Launch Pad selection — Raven-Flint Nuclear
- Antares Raises $470M Series C to Deploy Nuclear Microreactors for Critical Missions — Antares Nuclear (Business Wire)
About Nuclear News Network
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