VALAR WATCH
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374 facts · 512 sources · updated 2026-09-30

Fact gov-039

newcompany claimconfirmed Valar told residents 'every design' is reviewed and approved by DOE; true for the test reactor, not its commercial plans
2026-04-07 · gov-039 · Valar Atomics, Max Ukropina, Emery County Commission, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission

At the same 7 April 2026 Emery County hearing, a resident asked about safety buffer zones; Valar's representative answered that every design has to be reviewed and approved by the Department of Energy. Asked about 'turmoil' between the state and the NRC, Valar's Max Ukropina said past laws had been burdensome and that President Trump had loosened some regulations. Set beside the record: for Ward 250 the answer holds, since DOE alone authorizes it (safe-001, gov-005). For what Valar has described next it is incomplete: three months later Valar told the state's incentive board it plans 'additional commercial units in the area' and behind-the-meter power sales (gov-033); the executive order behind the DOE route covers reactors that do not produce commercial electric power (gov-005); and DOE's own releases, and Hogan Lovells' summary of the law, place later commercial licensing with the NRC (gov-007, gov-032, csite-010). DOE's Launch Pad USA pathway can authorize non-federal sites, but no record read shows Valar using it for another site (gov-010).

In plain termsAsked about safety at a public hearing, Valar said every design must be reviewed and approved by the Energy Department. That is true of the test reactor running now. But Valar has told state officials it plans commercial reactors that sell power, and under the President's own order, reactors that produce commercial power fall outside the Energy Department's shortcut. Those would need a license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission instead.
verified 2026-09-29: New in the verify pass 2026-09-29; all three sources read that day. The resident who asked is described, not named.

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