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Congress in March took a significant step toward terminating the construction of a controversial mixedoxide (MOX) fuel fabrication plant in South Carolina in favor of a cheaper alternative.
The plant, located at the Energy Department's Savannah River Site, is designed to turn 34 metric tons of surplus plutonium from the U.S. nuclear weapons program into fuel for power reactors. The MOX fuel effort has experienced major cost increases and schedule delays that put the project in jeopardy. The Energy Department has sought to end the program since 2014, but Congress, led by South Carolina's congressional delegation, has blocked such moves.
The fiscal year 2018 omnibus appropriations bill includes $335 million to continue construction of the MOX fuel facility, an increase...