Oklo has cleared a key fuel hurdle for its Aurora reactors by winning a place in advanced negotiations to convert U.S. surplus plutonium into reactor fuel. The move, announced on May 26, 2026, puts the Sam Altman-backed company among five firms in the Department of Energy's Surplus Plutonium Utilization Program and could supply near-term feedstock while Oklo builds longer-term domestic manufacturing capacity. Oklo said it will partner with Europe-based newcleo to define conversion and fabrication work on U.S. soil.
Oklo's inclusion in the Department of Energy program is a tactical win for a company that has said it needs secure fuel supply to move its Aurora class reactors from prototype to deployment. The DOE program aims to reduce stockpiles of surplus plutonium by converting it into usable reactor fuel, and in so doing to ease a potential bottleneck that could slow deployment of advanced reactors.
What the deal could deliver
Oklo said it was among five participants selected for advanced negotiations, a formal step that opens a pathway to contracts that would define conversion and fuel fabrication work in the United States. The company said the program would make excess plutonium available to be converted into reactor fuel, and that it will partner with newcleo to use the material. Oklo and newcleo are in talks to define projects and contracts that would govern fuel conversion and fabrication work on U.S. soil.
For Oklo, the immediate prize is near-term feedstock. The company has argued that fissioning surplus plutonium is a practical way to both reduce a long standing legacy liability and produce a fuel source now, rather than waiting for a future expansion of uranium enrichment or recycling capacity. Jacob DeWitte, Oklo's chief executive, framed the approach bluntly. "It can accelerate the deployment of multiple gigawatts of advanced reactors and serve as a bridge fuel until uranium enrichment and recycling scale up," he said.
That bridge language matters. Advanced reactor developers have warned that fuel availability could become the limiting factor even if reactor designs and licensing move forward. The DOE program attempts to address that by creating a route for surplus plutonium to be treated as feedstock rather than only as a waste disposal problem.
The newcleo partnership follows earlier agreements in which the Europe-based firm had planned to invest up to $2 billion to build U.S.-based fuel fabrication projects and to work with Oklo on multiple initiatives.
Oklo said newcleo had also discussed bringing Sweden's Blykalla into some of those projects as a co-investor and as a potential procurer of fuel-related services.
Domestically, Oklo has been advancing a broader fuel recycling strategy it says would recover energy from used nuclear fuel to supply advanced reactors such as its Aurora design. The company is developing a privately funded fuel recycling facility in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, where it has been carrying out site preparation work and advancing technology design and regulatory readiness. Oklo says the planned Tennessee Advanced Fuel Center would support long term fuel availability for its reactor deployments and create several hundred jobs.
Those elements together are intended to do three things. First, to provide a near-term feedstock through conversion of surplus plutonium. Second, to begin to scale up domestic fabrication capacity with partners such as newcleo. Third, to lay groundwork for a domestic recycling capability that would supply advanced reactor fleets farther down the line.
Officials at the Department of Energy designed the program to reduce plutonium stockpiles while creating feedstock for advanced reactor deployment. For companies like Oklo, which have private sector backing and ambitious deployment timetables, that combination of waste reduction and immediate supply is politically and commercially attractive.
Oklo said it's in advanced negotiations with the Department of Energy and its partners to define the scope and structure of fuel conversion and fabrication activities, and that it will disclose further project details as agreements are finalised. The company didn't provide a timetable for when conversion or fabrication might begin, nor did it give figures for the amount of plutonium that could be repurposed under prospective contracts.
Investors reacted quickly to the announcement. Oklo's shares rose after the company revealed its selection for negotiations, reflecting market appetite for tangible steps toward fuel security. For a class of advanced reactor startups, moves that shrink fuel uncertainty are a key de-risking event.
Still, using surplus plutonium as fuel isn't merely a technical exercise. It requires regulatory approvals, detailed contracts, and infrastructure to convert and fabricate the material safely and to suitable specifications for advanced reactors.
Oklo and newcleo will need to agree project scopes and contracts, and to ensure work is carried out under U.S. regulatory oversight.
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A concrete detail anchors this phase: newcleo had planned to invest up to $2 billion to build U.S.-based fuel fabrication projects and to work with Oklo on multiple initiatives, a scale of capital that would materially expand U.S. fuel manufacturing capacity if realised. Originally reported by Reuters.
This article was created with AI assistance.
