Nuclear Barbarians

FAI Podcasts

Emmet Penney talks to experts, workers, journalists, and scholars from all over the world about nuclear energy, energy issues, culture, and society. Subscribe to the substack to get the newsletter and the podcast sent directly to your inbox: https://nuclearbarians.substack.com/ www.nuclearbarbarians.com

  1. Energy Dominance Financing ft. Julie Kozeracki (EDF)

    JAN 29

    Energy Dominance Financing ft. Julie Kozeracki (EDF)

    Today I’m joined by Julie Kozeracki, the Chief Investment Officer of the Energy Dominance Financing Office, which serves as the Department of Energy’s bank. We talk about her admiration for Admiral Hyman Rickover, the nature of the EDF, financing large light water reactors and small modular reactors, why the EDF’s operations are vital to a nuclear renaissance in America, and more! I felt really lucky to speak with Julie. I’m a huge fan of hers and a major supporter of the EDF’s work. Read more about the EDF here!

    34 min
  2. Forward Operating Microreactors ft. Jeff Waksman (US Army)

    JAN 15

    Forward Operating Microreactors ft. Jeff Waksman (US Army)

    For this episode, my guest is Jeff Waksman, whose official title is Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy and Environment. That’s a long title. In brief, he’s trying to get microreactors built for the US Army via the Janus Program. We discussed the nature of the program, unforeseen challenges in hard tech, why the Army is pursuing microreactors, and more! You can learn more about Janus here. And you can follow Jeff Waksman on X—which I heartily recommend.

    36 min
  3. Perpetuating the Nuclear Lifecycle Ft. Ken Rueter (UCOR)

    11/13/2025

    Perpetuating the Nuclear Lifecycle Ft. Ken Rueter (UCOR)

    One of the best parts of running this podcast is the chance to learn about aspects of the nuclear industry I know little about. Today’s guest, the President and CEO of United Clean Up Oak Ridge, taught me all about remediating nuclear sites. UCOR, the DOE’s contractor for the Oak Ridge Reservation, boasts an impressive suite of expertise and logistical acumen dedicated to turning over former Manhattan Project sites for civilian and government use. Ken broke down the steps of remediation and the heavy machinery needed (including robots!) to deliver on these projects. I really appreciated the beauty of his vision: remediating Manhattan project sites to spur the nuclear renaissance.   This episode brought out the little kid in me. A huge thank you to Ken for making the time for our discussion.   You can learn more about UCOR here.

    49 min
  4. Texatomica ft. Reed Clay (Texas Nuclear Alliance)

    10/31/2025

    Texatomica ft. Reed Clay (Texas Nuclear Alliance)

    Reed Clay, President of the Texas Nuclear Alliance, joined me today to talk about how Texas is gearing up for the nuclear renaissance. We discussed how he came to support nuclear by learning about waste, what has set Texas’s nuclear strategy apart from other states, how TNA’s annual summit is shaping the national nuclear landscape, and Reed’s advice for other states that want to become nuclear hubs. Reed is a humble, hard-working guy and it was a pleasure to speak with him.

    48 min
  5. Reactors by the Bargeful by Jake Jurewicz (Blue Energy)

    10/10/2025

    Reactors by the Bargeful by Jake Jurewicz (Blue Energy)

    This episode is dedicated to all of the light water reactor fans out there. Especially if you like your LWRs in water. Listen to this conversation with the co-founder and CEO of Blue Energy, Jake Jurewicz, and you'll understand what I mean. Jake is a utility industry veteran with a lifetime of experience on construction sites, so our discussion about how his new company is going to site SMRs on waterways and ship them by barge gets into all kinds of deployment nitty gritty: management, permitting, financing, you name it.    Check out Blue Energy's website, LinkedIn, and X account.

    40 min
  6. Moving the World ft. Craig Fuller (Freightwaves)

    09/26/2025

    Moving the World ft. Craig Fuller (Freightwaves)

    Craig Fuller comes from a legacy trucking family. He’s also the CEO and founder of Freightwaves, the Bloomberg of logistics. So, Craig’s the perfect guy to write an accessible primer on supply chains, which is exactly what he’s done. He came on the show to talk about the new book, Moving the World: How the Supply Chain’s Evolution Affects Us All (which you can pre-order here!). We dig into what the Covid crisis taught us about supply chains, why reshoring makes sense both economically and strategically, and how supply chains and the grid are similar. Nuclear Barbarians is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Nuclear Barbarians at www.nuclearbarbarians.com/subscribe

    54 min
  7. Seafloor, Icecap, Moon ft. Tyler Bernstein of Zeno Power

    09/05/2025

    Seafloor, Icecap, Moon ft. Tyler Bernstein of Zeno Power

    Zeno Power, a cutting edge nuclear company, is making batteries powered with Strontium 90 for niche deployment cases: the moon, the arctic, and the seafloor. I got to pick Zeno cofounder and CEO Tyler Bernstein’s brain about their exciting new technology, why Zeno’s work is critical in our increasingly multipolar world, and the upsides of competing with China. This was a fascinating discussion and I think you guys are going to love it. Not long after we recorded this episode, Zeno added former NASA chief technologist AC Charania to its team as SVP of Space Business Development. Get full access to Nuclear Barbarians at www.nuclearbarbarians.com/subscribe

    42 min

  8. 08/30/2025

    Tickling the Dragon ft. Matt Loszak of Aalo Atomics

    Matt Loszak, the cofounder and CEO of Aalo Atomics, joined me to talk about Aalo’s progress rolling SMRs off the factory line. We get into Aalo’s test reactor at Idaho National Labs, a DOE path toward approving nuclear designs, how Trump’s nuclear executive orders have helped the industry, “zero power criticality,” and more. Since we recorded this episode, Aalo has closed its $100 million Series B and has officially been selected by the DOE to test the Aalo-X reactor at INL by hitting zero power criticality. And then they broke ground on the project just a few days ago! Get full access to Nuclear Barbarians at www.nuclearbarbarians.com/subscribe

    45 min
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About

Emmet Penney talks to experts, workers, journalists, and scholars from all over the world about nuclear energy, energy issues, culture, and society. Subscribe to the substack to get the newsletter and the podcast sent directly to your inbox: https://nuclearbarians.substack.com/ www.nuclearbarbarians.com

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