OAK RIDGE, Tennessee, December 16, 2025 – Jim Blankenhorn has been selected as the new president and chief executive officer of UCOR, effective April 1, 2026. He replaces Ken Rueter, who is retiring on March 30, 2026, after a long, distinguished career in the nuclear industry. Rueter’s retirement was announced in November.

Blankenhorn is currently senior vice president of Amentum’s Energy & Environment North America business line and has more than 38 years of experience leading major projects and programs across the nuclear industry.  He has excelled in leading the growth of Amentum’s environmental cleanup and nuclear business, having previously served as president of Amentum Technical Services as well as lead executive for the Nuclear Operations and Cleanup Sector.

Blankenhorn’s experience in the DOE Environmental Management industry is extensive. He served as the recovery manager, deputy project manager and chief operating officer for the Amentum-led Nuclear Waste Partnership, LLC at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in Carlsbad, NM, where he successfully led the resumption of DOE’s halted transuranic waste transportation and disposition program for which he won the corporation’s 2017 Project Delivery Excellence Award.

He also served as deputy project manager for West Valley Environmental Services, LLC; program director for the Waste Disposition Project at the Los Alamos National Laboratory; and waste type manager for the DOE Mixed Waste Focus Area. Blankenhorn held several leadership positions at the Savannah River Site, including chief engineer, deputy chief engineer for the Material Disposition organization, and deputy area project operations manager for the Waste Management Area Project.

Blankenhorn had a distinguished career in the U.S. Army, serving as a Brigadier General. His expertise included concept development, training, staffing, and doctrine development for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Forces, Consequence Management Operations, and Defense Support to Civilian Agencies. His awards include the Legion of Merit (two awards), the Meritorious Service Medal (six awards), and the Army Commendation Medal (eight awards).

Blankenhorn’s appointment positions UCOR for continued success and provides strong strategic focus as UCOR continues executing the DOE environmental cleanup mission across the Oak Ridge Reservation. This is an exciting new chapter, one that will lead the UCOR team to making continued monumental strides in cleanup while further enabling modernization and next-generation nuclear on federal lands.