POWER: DOE gave preliminary safety-analysis approval in Feb 2026 and final approval April 23, 2026

POWER magazine's June 19, 2026 report says Ward 250's DOE Documented Safety Analysis received preliminary approval in February 2026 and final approval on April 23, 2026, ahead of the June 18 criticality. It describes Ward 250 as a TRISO-fueled modular HTGR with helium coolant and names applications including electricity, process heat, hydrogen and materials processing. The DSA itself was not read: no public copy was found as of late September 2026 (safe-007). POWER also names Kiewit Nuclear Solutions as the engineering, procurement and construction contractor. The Partnership for Global Security separately wrote in March 2026 that the government had approved Valar's preliminary safety analyses.

• Valar Atomic’s Ward 250 Becomes Second Reactor to Go Critical Under DOE Pilot Program (POWER Magazine, 2026-06-19) news
• A Hollywood Highlight Reel for the Nuclear Renaissance (Ken Luongo) (Partnership for Global Security, 2026-03-13) analysis “the U.S. government has approved its Preliminary Documented Safety Analyses”