Request for Application: NRIC Nuclear Energy Launch Pad

NATIONAL REACTOR INNOVATION CENTER NUCLEAR ENERGY LAUNCH PAD - IDAHO NATIONAL LABORATORY

Request for Application (RFA)

RFA Issue Date:

April 29, 2026

Application Submissions:

The RFA is open continuously after the initial selection period described in the RFA attachment. New applications will be reviewed periodically for future recommendations to the Department of Energy. Additional selections will be made on a rolling basis, pursuant to the Department of Energy’s direction and resource capabilities.

All questions should be directed to: NRIC@inl.gov and will be answered as expeditiously as possible.

Applicants should provide a one-week minimum advanced notice to the points of contact found within the RFA and a secure link will be sent to the Applicants for their document submission. Applications may be submitted at any time and will be reviewed periodically.

• Upon completion of your submittal at the provided secure link, notify the POC found in the RFA.
• To protection sensitive information please do not email personally identifiable information (PII) or business sensitive information (BSI).
• All documents should be submitted in PDF form. Native files are optional.

Additional Information may be found at NRIC.INL.gov:

• Previously answered FAQs
• Industry Day: May 19, 2026 recording
• Fact Sheets for other National Laboratories supporting Launch Pad
• Contacts for University Subject Matter Experts supporting Launch Pad

REQUEST FOR APPLICATION DETAILS:

SEE REQUEST FOR APPLICATION PDF FILE IN ATTACHMENTS BELOW FOR FULL APPLICATION DOCUMENT

GDE-55179-REV2 IS LOCATED IN THE ATTACHMENTS SECTION BELOW - (UPDATED OCTOBER 19, 2026)

RFA SUMMARY

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Reactor Innovation Center (NRIC) are establishing the Nuclear Energy Launch Pad, an NRIC initiative aimed at promoting the rapid development and implementation of private industry deployments of a variety of advanced nuclear technologies.  The NRIC Launch Pad initiative builds upon DOE’s Reactor and Fuel Line Pilot Programs' success, creating an ecosystem to expedite advanced nuclear technology deployment using flexible technical and regulatory frameworks on federal and non-federal lands, through two distinct pathways, Launch Pad Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and Launch Pad United States of America (U.S.A).

DOE established the Reactor Pilot Program in June 2025, in response to Executive Order 14301, to leverage DOE authorization with the goal of achieving criticality in three reactors by July 4, 2026. Additionally, in August 2025, DOE established the Fuel Line Pilot Program, to support the Reactor Pilot Program and leverage DOE authorization to establish a domestic nuclear fuel supply chain for testing new reactors.

Given DOE’s Pilot Programs' mission success, DOE plans to extend these opportunities using the NRIC Launch Pad. Launch Pad will build on and enhance the DOE's Pilot Programs by creating a physical space and framework to allow continued nuclear innovation.  As with the Pilot Program projects, Launch Pad  will unlock private capital and enable fast tracking towards commercial licensing.

Types of nuclear facilities envisioned for the Launch Pad initiative include, but are not limited to, nuclear reactors, fuel fabrication, other fuel cycle facilities (i.e., fuel recycling, enrichment, conversion/deconversion facilities), and other supporting facilities.

GDE-55179-REV2 SUMMARY

This document explains the process for applying to the National Reactor Innovation Center’s (NRIC) Nuclear Energy Launch Pad Request for Applications (RFA) and outlines the criteria used to evaluate and select applications. NRIC will administer this process on behalf of and in collaboration with the United States Department of Energy (DOE). Nuclear Energy Launch Pad has two pathways via Launch Pad Idaho National Laboratory (INL) “Launch Pad INL” or Launch Pad United States of America (U.S.A.) “Launch Pad U.S.A.” The RFA is meant to be a stand-alone document, however, this guide supplements the information contained in the RFA.