The US Department of Energy has selected Oklo and four other companies to convert surplus plutonium into fuel for advanced nuclear reactors. Oklo, which builds small modular reactors, will partner with European nuclear provider Newcleo on the project.
The significance lies in what this reveals about the nuclear buildout. The Biden and Trump administrations have both prioritized rapid deployment of fission power to support AI data centre demand. But reactor developers face a fuel supply problem. Existing uranium enrichment capacity is limited. Building new enrichment plants takes years and billions of dollars.
Plutonium is a workaround. The US has roughly 95 metric tons of surplus weapons-grade plutonium from Cold War stockpiles. Converting this into fuel for advanced reactors bypasses the enrichment bottleneck entirely. It also solves a long-standing problem: what to do with weapons material the country no longer needs.
The DOE's Surplus Plutonium Utilization Program makes this material available to reactor developers willing to use it. Oklo's selection, alongside four competitors, means the government is serious about unlocking this fuel source fast.
For Oklo specifically, this is a validation of its business model. The company builds reactors designed to run on non-traditional fuels. Access to plutonium supply gives it a competitive advantage over rivals developing reactors dependent on conventional uranium enrichment.
The stock jumped on the announcement, reflecting investor recognition that fuel supply constraints could otherwise limit Oklo's growth. Removing that constraint removes a major risk to the entire advanced reactor industry.
The message is clear: the US is willing to repurpose Cold War stockpiles to accelerate nuclear deployment. For a sector facing supply-chain headwinds, it is good news.