Canadian-German nuclear technology company Dual Fluid has signed a memorandum of understanding with Canadian research centre TRIUMF to advance the development of a small modular reactor based on Dual Fluid technology.

The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission has spun off two nuclear start-ups - Hexana and Stellaria - for the development of small modular reactors.

The UK Atomic Energy Authority and the University of Sheffield have entered a partnership that is set to drive the development of fusion technology and the UK's future fusion industry. The collaboration will see Sheffield appoint two Chairs who will establish new research programmes to address global fusion challenges.

The USA's first-of-its-kind 1 MW demonstration scale, nuclear-powered clean hydrogen production facility has begun operating at Constellation's Nine Mile Point nuclear power plant in Oswego, New York. The company said the new facility will help demonstrate the potential for hydrogen to power a clean economy.

Bangor University in Wales will develop a nuclear thermal fuel system to support deep space exploration with funding provided by the UK Space Agency. It is one of eight projects receiving a total of GBP1.6 million (USD1.9 million) in funding through the agency's Enabling Space Exploration fund.

France's EDF has signed a Letter of Intent with Italy's Ansaldo Energia, Ansaldo Nucleare and Edison to assess potential industrial cooperation for the development of nuclear power in Europe, including in Italy, specifically in the field of small modular reactors.

Swedish lead-cooled small nuclear reactor technology developer LeadCold is to conduct a feasibility study on the construction and operation of a demonstration SEALER (Swedish Advanced Lead Reactor) with associated infrastructure for fuel fabrication in Studsvik.

Tomsk Polytechnic University and TVEL have launched a project to use electric discharges to speed up the decontamination of radioactive concrete. The aim is to allow decontamination of several square metres per hour.

Advanced nuclear fuel technology company Lightbridge and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have completed a collaborative project to demonstrate Lightbridge's nuclear fuel casting process using depleted uranium under the US Department of Energy's Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear voucher programme.

The Canadian government has launched a programme to support the commercial development of small modular reactors, providing CAD29.6 million (USD21.8 million) of funding over four years to develop supply chains for SMR manufacturing and fuel supply and security, and to fund research on safe SMR waste management solutions.

Ontario Tech University has begun pre-licensing activities for a new facility to support its undergraduate nuclear engineering programmes and for applied nuclear engineering research. The facility will be unique in Canada.

Test flights of drones fitted with equipment to identify and measure the radiation being emitted from a plume source have been conducted at the Mol site of Belgium's Nuclear Research Centre. Further tests flights are planned for later this year to prove a new, precise measurement technique.