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Conference Spotlight
2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
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August 2026
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Center for Used Fuel Research: Building confidence in storage and transport
Used nuclear fuel storage and transportation have reached a critical juncture.
Dozens of utilities need reliable data on how used nuclear fuel performs in dry storage casks and canisters to extend regulatory licenses at sites across the United States. Likewise, the Department of Energy expects to take ownership of the used nuclear fuel—termed “spent nuclear fuel” in the laws and regulations governing its stewardship—and transfer it to one or more federal staging facilities for management and disposition.
Meanwhile, dozens of reactor companies are testing prototypes of advanced reactors and advanced reactor fuels. Eventually, regulators and industry must also verify the safety and security of storage methods for these advanced fuel types.
To help address these challenges, the DOE established the Center for Used Fuel Research (CUFR) in January 2026 for work related to the long-term storage and transport of used nuclear fuel.
26th Technology of Fusion Energy Meeting (TOFE 2024)
Kieran is the CEO of Realta Fusion, an early-stage company developing fusion energy for applications in industrial process heat and power. He has extensive experience in start-ups and venture capital, particularly in the areas of energy, cleantech/climatetech, ag & food and industrial biotech. Kieran spent the first decade of his career with ICI and Johnson Matthey in the chemical industry in a range of technical and commercial roles across the globe – in Argentina, Germany, the UK and the USA. Following that, he moved into start-ups and worked on advanced fuels, bioplastics, waste-to-energy technologies, including the development of the first 100% bio-based Coca-Cola™ bottle.
In 2017, Kieran returned to his native country and launched the $24M Ireland Agtech Fund – a partnership between Finistere Ventures and the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund. In addition to his role with Realta Fusion, he is also a Senior Fellow at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Kieran served on the board of a number of start-ups and has mentored innovators from academia as they commercialized technology emerging from their research. He has a degree in Chemical Engineering from University College Dublin, Ireland and an MBA from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar.
About Realta Fusion
Realta Fusion is an early-stage fusion energy company which spun out of a large ARPA-e funded project at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The company raised a successful seed financing round in May 2023 led by Khosla Ventures and is an awardee of the Department of Energy’s Milestone Fusion Program. Realta is developing compact magnetic mirror fusion generators as the lowest capex and least complex path to commercially competitive fusion energy. Realta is targeting the need to decarbonize industrial process heat as the fastest path to full-scale deployment of this technology. The company is based in Madison, WI.
Last modified April 5, 2024, 10:07am CDT
