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In Memory of Rajat Deb: Inspiring Man of Ideas and Remarkable Silicon Valley Archetype

By Anjuli Deb -- With deep sadness and profound appreciation, we share the passing of LCG's founder, Dr. Rajat K. Deb. He was our president and one of the first entrepreneurs in the computer revolution. He was also our friend, our teacher and mentor, and for a few of us, our father and grandfather.

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Oklo and Centrus Sign Letter of Intent to Purchase Nuclear Fuel for Aurora Powerhouse Deployment in Southern Ohio

LCG, June 19, 2026--Oklo Inc. and Centrus Energy Corp. announced yesterday a Letter of Intent under which Centrus agrees to supply enough domestic high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) to power up to five of Oklo's Aurora nuclear powerhouses for multiple years, with deliveries to Oklo scheduled to begin in 2029. Centrus will supply HALEU from its American Centrifuge Plant in Pike County, Ohio to support Oklo’s planned 1.2 GW power campus in the region

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Industry News

Silicon Valley Vulnerable to Power Problems

LCG, Sept. 12, 2000San Jose, Calif., which bills itself as the "capital of Silicon Valley," is the Northern California city most likely to experience a major electric power failure in the next five years, the San Jose Mercury News said this morning, citing the state's Independent system Operator.

The question came up because of a 600 megawatt power plant proposed by Calpine Corp. which would be built on the south edge of town. The company announced the plant in February 1999 and had hoped to have all necessary approvals for the Metcalf Energy Center secured by now, but there is some local opposition.

Cal-ISO supported the Metcalf plant, which would be built off Monterey Road near a Pacific Gas & Electric Co. substation in a recent letter, but the paper found residents in the mostly industrial neighborhood who were willing to say "not in my back yard."

One of them, Issa Ajlouny, told the paper the power plant "doesn't belong in the neighborhood, especially when no power is needed." Ajlouny must not have heard that electric bills in San Diego have almost tripled during the summer because power demand exceeds supply in California.

If Silicon Valley is vulnerable to power shortages, it can be said the problems is largely of its own making. The Wall Street Journal noted last Thursday that the electric load of some high tech firms in the area is that of a steel mill or a small town.

Sun Microsystems presents the electric generation sector with a 26 megawatt demand, the Wall Street noted, and Oracle has a load of 13 megawatts. Intel, Apple, Hewlett-Packard, Memorex, Xerox, IBM and scores of other large companies weren't even mentioned.

None of those companies was there when the last power plant was built in the area. Nor were the people who work for the companies, and go home to houses with a dozen or more electrical necessities such as big-screen television, computers and air-conditioning.

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. spokesman Ron Low told the Mercury News "What you heard from the ISO is accurate," and PG&E should know. It has been serving the area for a hundred years and recently conducted an exhaustive study of its power infrastructure, looking into things that could go wrong.

The utility found that 20 worst-case contingencies could occur in San Jose. San Francisco was runner-up with seven.

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