Spurred by a suite of executive orders and investments from the federal government, new nuclear reactors are coming soon. Or the announcements are at least. 

The advanced nuclear sector has found itself in the spotlight as companies race to acquire licenses and permits aimed at achieving "criticality.” But what do these milestones signify? And is hitting the deadlines even feasible?

In this episode, Shayle talks to Katy Huff,  former assistant secretary for nuclear energy at the Department of Energy and current associate professor at the University of Illinois. They unpack the wave of new nuclear announcements, the realities of navigating an arcane regulatory gauntlet, and what Katy considers a realistic timeline for new nuclear deployment.

Shayle and Katy cover topics like:

The NRC’s “murky” pre-application process

The differences between various licensing pathways

Why Katy views the DOE’s goal to have three reactors reach criticality by July 4th as “an extremely aggressive milestone”

Upcoming revised guidance on nuclear radiation dose rates

The challenges facing the DOE amidst a staff shortage

Katy’s assessment of a feasible timeline for getting new reactors operational

Why Katy doesn’t think microreactors are economically scalable…yet

Catalyst: The US nuclear groundswell

Open Circuit: Inside Meta’s massive nuclear push

Latitude Media: The self-inflicted hurdles facing Trump’s nuclear orders

Latitude Media: The Department of Energy’s 2026 playbook⁠

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 Uplight. Uplight activates energy customers and their connected devices to generate, shift, and save energy—improving grid resilience and energy affordability while accelerating decarbonization. Learn how Uplight is helping utilities unlock flexible load at scale at ⁠uplight.com⁠. 

Catalyst is brought to you by Antenna Group, the public relations and strategic marketing agency of choice for climate, energy, and infrastructure leaders. If you're a startup, investor, or global corporation that's looking to tell your climate story, demonstrate your impact, or accelerate your growth, Antenna Group's team of industry insiders is ready to help. Learn more at ⁠antennagroup.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.