Catalyst with Shayle Kann

Building a domestic nuclear fuel supply chain


Listen Later

Even as momentum grows for U.S. nuclear, the fuel supply chain is often overlooked. This dynamic is shifting as the industry wakes up to critical choke points and a heavy reliance on countries like Russia for enrichment. As America aims to reduce geopolitical dependency in energy, fixing these domestic gaps has become a strategic priority.

In this episode — a companion to a separate episode of Catalyst focused on nuclear waste — Shayle Kann speaks with Scott Nolan, the CEO of General Matter. The company is focused on enrichment, one of the most acute risk areas in the supply chain. Shayle and Scott also discuss the big-picture state of nuclear fuel, from mining to advanced reactor requirements.

The two cover topics like:

  • The five-step nuclear fuel supply chain
  • America’s continued reliance on Russian enrichment:
  • The history of enrichment decline in the US
  • The "chicken or egg" problem for advanced reactors
  • Distinctions between LEU and HALEU fuel
  • Enrichment’s toll-service business model
  • The strategic importance of General Matter’s enrichment facility in Paducah, Kentucky

    • Catalyst: The state and future of nuclear waste
    • Catalyst: The path to market for new nuclear reactors
    • Catalyst: The US nuclear groundswell
    • Open Circuit: Inside Meta’s massive nuclear push
    • Open Circuit: Fear and loathing at the Department of Energy
    • Latitude Media: What TerraPower’s big milestone says about future nuclear projects
    • Latitude Media: Commonwealth Fusion Systems launches digital twin with Nvidia and Siemens

      Credits: Hosted by Shayle Kann. Produced and edited by Max Savage Levenson. Original music and engineering by Sean Marquand. Stephen Lacey is our executive editor.

      Catalyst is brought to you by FischTank PR, an award-winning climate and energy tech, renewables, and sustainability-focused PR firm dedicated to elevating the work of both early-stage and established companies. Learn more about their PR approach and how they can support your company’s messaging by visiting fischtankpr.com.


      Catalyst is brought to you by EnergyHub. EnergyHub helps utilities build next-generation virtual power plants that unlock reliable flexibility at every level of the grid. See how EnergyHub helps unlock the power of flexibility at scale, and deliver more value through cross-DER dispatch with their leading Edge DERMS platform, by visiting energyhub.com.

      ...more
      View all episodesView all episodes
      Download on the App Store

      Catalyst with Shayle KannBy Latitude Media

      • 4.9
      • 4.9
      • 4.9
      • 4.9
      • 4.9

      4.9

      270 ratings


      More shows like Catalyst with Shayle Kann

      View all
      Planet Money by NPR

      Planet Money

      30,609 Listeners

      Odd Lots by Bloomberg

      Odd Lots

      1,993 Listeners

      Energy Gang by Wood Mackenzie

      Energy Gang

      1,252 Listeners

      Columbia Energy Exchange by Columbia University

      Columbia Energy Exchange

      399 Listeners

      Interchange Recharged by Wood Mackenzie

      Interchange Recharged

      506 Listeners

      The Indicator from Planet Money by NPR

      The Indicator from Planet Money

      9,556 Listeners

      Redefining Energy by Laurent Segalen and Gerard Reid

      Redefining Energy

      132 Listeners

      Switched On by Bloomberg

      Switched On

      103 Listeners

      Cleaning Up: Leadership in an Age of Climate Change by Michael Liebreich, Bryony Worthington

      Cleaning Up: Leadership in an Age of Climate Change

      80 Listeners

      Hard Fork by The New York Times

      Hard Fork

      5,576 Listeners

      Volts by David Roberts

      Volts

      638 Listeners

      The Green Blueprint by Latitude Media

      The Green Blueprint

      203 Listeners

      The Latitude by Latitude Media

      The Latitude

      124 Listeners

      Hot Buttons by Latitude Media

      Hot Buttons

      71 Listeners

      Zero: The Climate Race by Bloomberg

      Zero: The Climate Race

      230 Listeners

      With Great Power by GridX and Latitude Studios

      With Great Power

      85 Listeners

      Shift Key with Robinson Meyer by Heatmap News

      Shift Key with Robinson Meyer

      119 Listeners

      Open Circuit by Latitude Media

      Open Circuit

      141 Listeners