The Department of Army on Oct. 14 announced the launch of the Janus Program, a next-generation nuclear power program.
The announcement was made at an Association of the United States Army Annual Meeting Warriors Corner panel, where Army leaders were joined by the U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright to highlight this initiative.
Executive Order 14299, “Deploying Advanced Nuclear Reactor Technologies for National Security,” directs the Department of War to commence operation of an Army-regulated nuclear reactor at a domestic military installation no later than September 30, 2028.
The Department of Army, designated by the Secretary of War as the Executive Agent for this mission, will lead the Janus Program on behalf of the Department of War.
The Janus Program will leverage the Army’s nuclear regulatory authorities in close partnership with the Department of Energy to ensure the highest standards of safety, oversight, and transparency, the Army said.
The program will build commercial microreactors through a milestone-based contracting model in partnership with the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU).
The reactors will be commercially owned-and-operated, with the milestone payments intended to help companies close their business cases as they seek “Nth-of-a-kind” production. The Army and DIU will be modeling this contracting mechanism off of NASA’s Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program.
The Army will provide technical oversight and assistance, including support to the full uranium fuel cycle and broader nuclear supply chain, ensuring the program strengthens both defense and U.S. industrial capabilities.
The Janus Program will build on lessons learned from Project Pele, a transportable nuclear reactor which is the first electricity-producing Generation IV nuclear reactor to begin construction anywhere in the world outside of China. The Department of Energy laboratory teams which partnered on the technical, legal, and policy aspects of Project Pele will also be working closely on the Janus Program.
