HOPKINS, S.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct 21, 2026--
Westinghouse Electric Company today announced an approximately $1 billion investment to construct one of the most advanced nuclear fuel factories in the United States at its Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility in Hopkins, S.C. This plant, which is the first fleet-scale nuclear fuel factory built in the United States in more than 50 years, is expected to lead the way in commercial scale Low Enriched Uranium Plus (LEU+) fuel production. Construction on the new LEU+ Fuel factory is underway and on track to begin operations in 2030. LEU+ Fuel manufacturing at Columbia is expected to enable the effective long-term operation of today’s nuclear fleet and support the industrialization of AP1000® reactors worldwide.
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Aligned with the United States’ UPRISE program, LEU+ Fuel is expected to unlock advanced operating plant uprates that would provide near-term expansion of nuclear power output nationwide to meet the growing demand for baseload nuclear power. LEU+ Fuel, which has a higher level of uranium enrichment (5% to 8%), also offers the flexibility to extend operating cycles, helping nuclear power plant operators lower operating costs and deliver greater value to their customers. In 2025, the first successful deployment of LEU+ Fuel in the United States marked a major milestone. The new Columbia factory builds on this delivery, creating a turning point with the potential to bring this super-efficient fuel industrywide.
“South Carolina is already leading America’s nuclear renaissance, and our state has been producing the nuclear fuel that powers approximately 10% of the United States from Westinghouse’s fuel operations in Richland County,” said South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster. “We are grateful for Westinghouse’s continued leadership in South Carolina, and we look forward to it expanding its work in our state to create next-generation fuel products that will continue to support nuclear energy production well into the future.”
"This investment is a testament to our state’s skilled workforce and the important role we play in strengthening America’s clean energy," said Congressman James E. Clyburn. "By expanding our domestic nuclear fuel production capabilities, we are creating economic opportunities, supporting good-paying jobs and positioning South Carolina as a leader in the nation’s energy sector."
“A strong American nuclear industry starts with a secure, domestic supply of nuclear fuel,” said Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy Ted Garrish. “The Department of Energy is investing billions to restore American uranium enrichment capabilities for both low-enriched uranium and high-assay low-enriched uranium. Westinghouse’s nearly $1 billion investment in South Carolina builds on that effort by expanding the manufacturing capacity needed to turn enriched uranium into fuel that powers our existing reactors and supports the next generation of nuclear technology.”
"Richland County has spent years laying the groundwork for investments like this one, and we're grateful to Westinghouse for this historic expansion,” said Richland County Council Chairwoman and Columbia Area Development Partnership Co-Chair Jesica Mackey. “Beyond the significant investment that will strengthen our schools and local infrastructure, this new facility will move Lower Richland forward as one of the world’s leading providers of clean energy. Our workforce has supported this facility for generations, and this expansion ensures that we’ll continue to see high-paying jobs and economic stability for years to come.”
“Westinghouse has been a leader in the nuclear industry for 90 years and continues innovating the next frontier in nuclear technology,” said Dan Sumner, President and Chief Executive Officer of Westinghouse. “As we advance the next generation of fuel, we are positioned to create more value for our customers and unlock new nuclear generation to support the growing demand for baseload power. The Columbia LEU+ Fuel factory is our largest single manufacturing investment to support the operating fleet and marks a transformative milestone for our company and the industry. By scaling our LEU+ Fuel manufacturing capabilities, we reinforce our commitment to support our customers in producing more nuclear power while creating new opportunities in South Carolina. We are grateful for DOE’s tax credit program and to the state and Richland County governments for their invaluable support, which were key to reaching this historic achievement.”
The Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility, built in 1968, is one of the largest nuclear fuel plants in the world, producing fuel pellets, fuel rods, fuel assemblies and fuel components to support other Westinghouse plants and a global base of customers.
The Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility employs over 1,200 people in Lower Richland, providing well-paid jobs for people with diverse skills and educational backgrounds. This investment of approximately $1 billion is projected to contribute $4.9 billion in positive economic impact across South Carolina over the next 10 years, including approximately $3.8 billion in Richland County through construction, new equipment and the creation of additional jobs, workforce development and career growth opportunities throughout the Columbia region, according to an economic impact study commissioned by Westinghouse in partnership with researchers at the University of South Carolina’s Darla Moore School of Business.
As construction progresses on the new LEU+ Fuel building, Westinghouse remains committed to environmental stewardship through responsible site development and preservation of native landscapes that support wildlife habitat and healthy air and water resources.
About Westinghouse
Westinghouse delivers nuclear energy the world needs to meet rising electricity demand, support growing economies, strengthen energy security and power millions of homes across five continents. The company designs and deploys advanced nuclear reactors, manufactures the fuel that powers them, maintains and modernizes operating plants and advances tomorrow’s breakthroughs. Founded in 1886, the company electrified the industrial economy and pioneered nuclear power with the first commercial pressurized water reactor in 1957. Today, Westinghouse technology powers 57% of the world's nuclear power plants, maintains nearly two-thirds of the world's nuclear fleet and fuels 40% of that fleet. As the global leader in deployment of nuclear power at scale, Westinghouse has one of the largest new build pipelines in the industry. From nuclear’s first chapter to its next, Westinghouse turns possibility into power.
A rendering of the new LEU+ Fuel building, the first fleet-scale nuclear fuel factory built in the United States in more than 50 years.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to allow the Trump administration to immediately enforce new medical restrictions for transgender people in prison. An executive order by President Donald Trump had called on the Bureau of Prisons to revise its medical care policies so that federal funds aren’t spent “for the purpose of conforming an inmate’s appearance to that of the opposite sex.” The new policy, blocked earlier by a lower court, would halt surgeries, taper off hormones and end social accommodations like makeup and wigs.
Meanwhile, Trump plans to visit South Carolina on Wednesday to boost U.S. Sen. Darline Graham, whose stumbles in her first campaign since replacing her late brother have Democratic voters hopeful — but not necessarily optimistic — that their candidate can break Republicans’ grip on the state.
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Hubbard’s younger sister said she spoke with her brother on the phone after his release and described him as in disbelief.
“He was just laughing because he was just, he said ‘I can’t believe this is happening,’” Patricia Hubbard Fox said during a phone interview as she headed to Denver’s airport to catch a flight to San Antonio to meet her brother.
“He really thought he was going to die in prison,” she added, saying her brother suffered beatings and starvation in prison.
Hubbard Fox said her brother was in perfect health when he was “kidnapped” in 2022 and accused of fighting alongside Kyiv’s forces following Russia’s invasion. Now, she said, he likely has post-traumatic stress disorder from the ordeal and suffers from an enlarged heart.
The State Department is ordering some diplomats and the families of U.S. government employees to leave Saudi Arabia following a series of deadly attacks in the country by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels and rising fears of an escalation in hostilities.
The department said Wednesday it had ordered the departure of non-essential staff at the U.S. embassy in Riyadh and its satellite consulates. The embassy had been badly damaged at the start of the Iran war and had been operating with only a skeleton staff for months, although in recent weeks some diplomats had returned.
”Iranian-supported Houthis have engaged in hostilities against Saudi Arabia, including attacks on civilian airports and other critical infrastructure resulting in civilian casualties and severe travel disruptions. The hostilities have the potential to escalate rapidly beyond that immediate area,” the department said in a new travel alert.
Speaking to reporters at an unrelated White House event, Trump said the release of Stephen Hubbard came together quickly after Trump asked Vladimir Putin to release Hubbard during a phone call last week.
“I hear he’s in pretty good shape,” Trump said. “He went through a lot. I spoke to him this morning. He is the happiest man around.”
Trump called the 74-year-old Hubbard a “very high quality, innocent man.”
A retired teacher from Michigan, Hubbard was jailed in Russia for more than four years on charges of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine.
The president, sitting at a table with Attorney General Todd Blanche and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth among others, said that every American with an aging parent or young child feels “anxiety” about their loves ones’ vulnerability to online criminals.
Americans reported losing $20 billion to cyber-enabled crimes last year, but that’s likely an undercount, the president continued, touting the government’s “national campaign to destroy this menace.”
That includes “fraudsters, hackers and scammers,” as well as perpetrators of sextortion. That’s when a scammer gets ahold of a someone’s — often a teenager’s — sensitive photos, and use them as blackmail for money.
“It sounds so sinister,” he said, “I guess it is.”
The Treasury Department on Wednesday sanctioned Karnakis and Karnakis, a Greek and Panamanian-based law firm it accuses of supporting Tehran’s illicit shipping activity and allowing it to generate revenue to fund its military, weapons and nuclear program.
Also targeted were Singapore and UAE-based shipping agents that U.S. officials say directly aid Iran’s shadow fleet network.
“Whether you are conducting illegal oil transfers at sea or sitting in the corner office of a law firm, if you are supporting the Iranian regime, we will find you and sanction you,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.
These are the latest targets as part of the Trump administration’s wider-ranging economic campaign against Iran, which after months has failed to make Tehran capitulate to U.S. terms regarding its nuclear ambitions.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Wednesday on X that Iran remains open to diplomacy, if the United States demonstrates a willingness to build trust and reach a resolution.
“But if US chooses war over diplomacy, it’ll certainly result in an even greater strategic failure,” he added.
He echoed remarks he wrote in the Financial Times but gave no details of talks with Washington through mediators on Iran’s recent seven-day proposal to end the war and fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters on Wednesday that mediation efforts are welcomed, but that the final decision on acceptable terms rests with Trump.
“The United States will not support any deal that creates a pathway for Iran to ever have a nuclear weapon. As long as President Trump is in office, they will never have a nuclear weapon,” he added.
The Democratic candidate was speaking at a rally in Houston, hitting the point he’s repeated throughout this race, that “billionaire megadonors are trying to buy this election” by donating to his opponent, Republican Ken Paxton.
But this time, Talarico got more specific. “Actually, it’s just one billionaire megadonor.”
“In all likelihood,” Talarico continued, if the audience had seen a television attack ad against him, or received negative mailers or texts, “that was Elon.”
Just before Talarico’s rally, Musk posted on his social media platform X, “There is something deeply wrong with Talarico.”
The barbs followed reporting that Musk contributed $158 million to the Senate Leadership Fund, which gave $158 million to Texas PAC, the largest contributor to Paxton’s campaign.
Musk also provided $10 million to Lone Star Liberty PAC, which supports Paxton.
“On Nov. 3, we are going to send a clear message to the world’s first trillionaire,” said Talarico. “Texas is not for sale.”
A campaign sign that appears to be for Republican Illinois governor candidate Darren Bailey is actually the handiwork of Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker, who is trying to remind voters about his opponent’s political connections to President Donald Trump.
The bright blue yard sign features Bailey’s name in bold white letters across the top, with “Trump” underneath and “endorsed by” in between.
But in small letters at the bottom, it shows that Pritzker paid for it.
Bailey, a former state lawmaker in Illinois, is running in a rematch against Pritzker after losing by 12 points in 2022.
Pritzker has been hammering Bailey for his close ties to Trump, including the yard signs and a new campaign ad showing Bailey speaking at a Trump rally in 2022 when the president first endorsed him.
Bailey’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
The vice president was asked by a reporter to explain his comments in a recent interview that he wouldn’t endorse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for reelection by claiming, “I endorse American candidates,” even though he endorsed Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in the spring and even campaigned for him in Hungary.
Vance said he has endorsed only one foreign candidate for election and it “didn’t go particularly well,” as Orban lost the election.
But Vance went on and said that was in April and now, “We’re in the middle of an American election cycle where I’m very focused on candidates getting elected in the United States of America.”
He said he wasn’t attacking Netanyahu by not endorsing him but said, “I’m not endorsing any more foreign candidates now or in the future.”
Despite backlash from some of their fellow Republicans for Trump’s envoy calling the Russian President Vladimir Putin a “humanitarian,” Vance said, “I agree with Steve Witkoff saying something nice to a person who just released an American hostage.”
Witkoff made the comments as he thanked Putin for releasing an American who had been jailed for more than four years.
The vice president called Witkoff “a diplomat” and said he was in Russia to get a job done.
“I care much less about what Steve said than about the fact that he is bringing an American hostage home to his family. We should all be celebrating that, not be complaining about what Steve Wikoff said in order to get it done.”
Vice President JD Vance said it was “not really my concern” whether the ad was appropriate and said he’s focused on supporting Republican candidates in midterm races.
“I’m a little bit disgusted when I see Republicans across the country who are whining more about that advertisement than they are about what the congressional Democrats and other Democrats want to do to the United States of America,” Vance said in his first public comments on the ad.
He added: “Politics is a tough business. And my message to my fellow elected Republicans is: If you actually believe in the things you say you believe in, stop whining about an advertisement and go win the race in 13 days.”
Republican Vivek Ramaswamy’s team took credit for the ad featuring the estranged mother of featuring of Amy Acton in the Ohio governor’s race.
Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins on Wednesday said a new ad calling her Democratic opponent, Troy Jackson a “freak” and a “creep” because “he has two kids with his cousin” should be taken down.
The ad, which has attracted attention this week, is from the Senate Leadership Fund, which is backing Collins as she seeks reelection. Democrats are hoping Jackson will win the seat in their pursuit to take back control of the Senate.
Collins distanced herself from the ad on Wednesday, saying that the ad “should be taken down” and she “had nothing to do with that ad.”
In a Politico story earlier this year, Collins referenced Jackson having a relationship with his second cousin. Jackson’s longtime partner, Lana Pelletier, released an op-ed Wednesday criticizing Collins and her supporters’ attacks on her family, saying she never thought they “would stoop this low.”
The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to allow the Trump administration to immediately enforce new medical restrictions for transgender people in prison.
The decision leaves in place a lower-court block on the policy. It was adopted after an executive order from President Trump, who’s taken several steps to roll back transgender rights during his second term.
Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas would have allowed the policy to be enforced.
The Supreme Court has previously allowed other policies for transgender people to move ahead for now, including restrictions on military service and passport sex markers.
Trump’s order called on the Bureau of Prisons to revise its medical care policies so federal funds aren’t spent “for the purpose of conforming an inmate’s appearance to that of the opposite sex.”
The new policy would halt surgeries, taper off hormones and end social accommodations like makeup and wigs. Prisons would continue to offer mental health services.
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Rubio said Ukraine would no longer exist if it wasn’t for U.S. support.
Rubio’s comments to reporters in Mumbai, India, came as the administration has been taken to task for curtailing intelligence sharing and the supply of weaponry for Ukraine. He said the administration would no longer take such criticism without a response.
“We’re no longer going to be defensive about this topic. If it were not for the assistance of the United States, including under the Trump administration, there would be no Ukraine right now,” Rubio said. “Ukraine as a sovereign state would not exist.”
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is insisting that President Trump and the U.S. government more broadly had nothing to do with interruptions to Ukraine’s access to crucial satellite data that Ukrainian officials say have compromised their ability to counter Russian attacks.
Speaking to reporters in India on Wednesday, Rubio said for the third time in four days that any throttling of network access to Ukraine was not directed or ordered by Trump or anyone else in his administration. He suggested, though, that the owner of the system, Elon Musk, may have been involved.
“What I can tell you with certainty is the president of the United States nor anyone in our system ever requested that any changes to that system be made, and that’s what we said repeatedly,” Rubio said. “The president has nothing to do with the decisions that are made by Starlink and Starshield and by Mr. Musk. That’s a private company. The president doesn’t run that company and can’t direct that company to do anything.”
That’s Neil Bush, the brother of one Republican president and the son of another, who authored a long Facebook post Tuesday night saying he voted early, and for Talarico over Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton.
Bush said his decision was two-pronged. Paxton’s past, particularly his spearheading of a failed lawsuit to challenge the 2020 election results, “was an affront to our democratic institutions,” Bush wrote. Those who have “enabled” Trump, he continued, “have done enormous damage to the Republican Party.”
Turning to Talarico, Bush noted that he’d never met the candidate, but that he’s been “enormously impressed” and has seen “integrity, civility, humility” and an openness to listen to those who disagree with him.
“I have been a Republican for most of my life, and I still believe deeply in many traditional Republican principles,” Bush wrote, “but character matters more than party affiliation.”
Some Republican lawmakers are reacting with dismay in response to Trump special envoy Steve Witkoff’s praise of Russian President Vladimir Putin as a “humanitarian.”
“No. Putin is stone cold killer,” said Republican Sen. John Cornyn in a social media post on X.
“Another embarrassment,” said Republican Rep. Don Bacon, including a clip of Witkoff’s remarks, in his post.
“What an embarrassing and outrageous thing to say,” said Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina. “You should go back to Ukraine and ask the families of the children Putin has kidnapped and murdered whether they agree your friend Putin is a ‘humanitarian.’”
Witkoff’s description came as he thanked Putin for releasing an American who had been jailed for more than four years on charges of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine.
Collins made the campaign stop at a hot dog restaurant in Maine on Wednesday morning with former Sen. Joe Manchin as she tries to win reelection to her seat.
Collins, a five-term Republican senator, is in a tough reelection fight with Democrat Troy Jackson. Manchin touted her as a longtime moderate voice during a brief appearance after the morning campaign event.
Manchin, a longtime Democrat who became an independent shortly before retiring from the Senate, called Collins “the soul of the Senate.”
The two are also scheduled to appear at a New Balance sneaker facility in Maine later Wednesday.
To voter Roy Lyons, Los Angeles has been losing luster for years. A homeless crisis endures despite billions of dollars of spending. City Hall’s budget keeps swelling — as do the taxes needed to support it.
As the retired insurance broker from the Sherman Oaks neighborhood ponders his pick in the upcoming mayoral election, he’s leaning toward the unpopular incumbent, Mayor Karen Bass, over her fellow progressive Democrat Nithya Raman, a little-known city council member who’s backed by the Democratic Socialists of America. She endorsed Bass before changing her mind and entering the race.
Neither choice gives him confidence about the future.
“Is this the best we can do?” asked Lyons, a Democrat, who attended a recent candidate forum. “I don’t think either one shines.”
If Bass wins the Nov. 3 election, it will be because she was able to persuade voters like Lyons to give her a second chance after a rough first term that included the deadly Palisades Fire, which ignited when she was out of the country and caught the fire department unprepared.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin’s foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov told reporters after a meeting between Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff that the Russian leader has agreed “in principle” to resume the trilateral talks after Nov. 10.
Witkoff held talks with Putin in St. Petersburg on Wednesday about Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, as Trump pushes Kyiv to make a deal that stops the fighting.
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The Justice Department’s inspector general has declined to investigate the handling of the criminal case against a former Olympian cleared of accusations that he intentionally damaged the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, according to a letter Wednesday from the man’s lawyers.
The internal watchdog told David Hearn’s lawyers the allegations of professional misconduct they made fall outside its jurisdiction and are instead within the purview of the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility, according to the letter, which urges Inspector General Don R. Berthiaume to reconsider the decision.
“Given the substantial public attention devoted to this matter, and the significant questions raised concerning the conduct of federal officials, declining independent review would risk undermining public confidence in the Department’s ability to police its own conduct. Such a result would be inconsistent with the purposes for which Congress established the OIG and would be a betrayal of its mission,” the letter says.
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President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally at Pitt–Greenville Airport, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026, in Greenville, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Ramey)
President Donald Trump arrives on Air Force One, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026, in Washington, as Vice President JD Vance listens. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
