- Contractors contracted by the Army for its Janus nuclear microreactor program could make hundreds of millions of dollars through a milestone-based award format
- Companies that don’t perform will fall off early, but those who last could reap large financial payments
- Get the latest partnership opportunities in advanced energy from Dr. Jeff Waksman during his keynote at the 2026 Army Summit on June 18!
Contractors selected for the Army’s Janus next-generation nuclear microreactor program this summer could make hundreds of millions of dollars in a flexible contracting format, according to a key executive.
Dr. Jeff Waksman, Army principal deputy assistant secretary for installations, energy and environment, told ExecutiveGov in an exclusive interview ahead of his keynote at the 2026 Army Summit on June 18 that the Janus Program will use other transaction authority awards tied to different milestones for each company. If companies don’t perform, they will fall off early and not receive much money.
But Waksman said that companies that perform and hit their milestones will stand to make large amounts of money if they stay on schedule. The Defense Innovation Unit, he said, has budgeted hundreds of millions of dollars to support the Janus Program in FY 2027. Waksman wrote in an article at the National Interest that DIU has set aside more than $2 billion over the next five years to develop and build, and help commercial contractors develop mass-producable nuclear reactors that can be sold on the open market.
The Army is in the midst of negotiations for Janus Program contracts. Waksman expects the service to announce contract recipients and values this summer.
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What Is the Janus Program?
The Janus Program aims to deliver resilient, secure and assured energy to support national defense installations and critical missions. Executive Order 14299, “Deploying Advanced Nuclear Reactor Technologies for National Security,” directs the Department of War to begin operation of an Army-regulated nuclear reactor at a domestic military installation no later than September 30, 2028.
What Is the Goal of the Janus Program?
The Janus Program has a goal of building commercially owned-and-operated microreactors with the milestone payments intended to help companies close their business cases as they seek “Nth-of-a-kind” production, according to a service statement. The Army and DIU are modeling the acquisition strategy from NASA’s Commercial Orbital Transportation Services, or COTS, program from the early 2000s.
NASA in 2005 provided $500 million for COTS with a goal of stimulating commercial enterprise in space through innovative, cost-effective commercial cargo and crew, or human, transportation services to the International Space Station. One of the early COTS contractors, SpaceX, is now one of the leaders in modern space transportation.
Waksman wants to be creative with acquisition authorities in 2026 to stretch budgets further. Whether it’s housing or energy, Waskman wants his division to be more commercial in how it operates.
“The commercial sector has found ways to operate cheaper,” he said. “We find that, historically, the Army spends way more than the commercial sector does to get the same thing. So we’re trying to bring those prices down.”
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Waksman is also known for his previous work on Project Pele, a Department of War Strategic Capabilities Office initiative to build a transportable nuclear reactor. He’s working closely with Project Pele officials to better inform the Janus Program.
What Other Energy Programs Is Jeff Waksman Working On?
Waksman and the Army are also working on other energy efforts aside from nuclear, including geothermal, which is heat energy from the earth. There’s a lot of interesting approaches to geothermal with a lot of overlap with nuclear power, he said.
Hot rocks, fluid and permeability, or the ability for that fluid to move among the rocks, offer conditions from which electricity can be generated. Heat energy is then converted to steam, which drives turbines that produce electricity.
While there are no new geothermal deals to announce, the Army is pursuing it aggressively, Waksman said.
