US-based Centrus Energy has announced plans for a major expansion of uranium enrichment at its American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon, Ohio. The aim is to increase production of Low-Enriched Uranium (LEU) and High-Assay, Low-Enriched Uranium (HALEU). The extent of the expansion will depend on federal funding decisions for LEU and HALEU by the Department of Energy (DOE).
In anticipation of the expansion, Centrus raised more than $1.2bn in two convertible note transactions over the last 12 months and has secured more than $2bn in contingent purchase commitments from utility customers in the US and around the world. Centrus also announced a collaboration with Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power and POSCO International to potentially invest in the project.
Centrus recently submitted proposals to DOE as part of a competitive selection process for potential awards to expand domestic production of LEU for existing reactors and HALEU for advanced reactors. Subject to being selected for funding the expansion plans call for a multi-billion-dollar public and private investment to add thousands of additional centrifuges at Piketon,
The expansion is expected to create 1,000 construction jobs and 300 new operations jobs at the Piketon site, while retaining 127 existing jobs. A large-scale expansion would represent a multi-billion-dollar private and public investment into Ohio. JobsOhio and OhioSE will be long-term partners to Centrus as the company ramps up recruiting and hiring to fill the 300 operations jobs this project is expected to create.
“The time has come to restore America’s ability to enrich uranium at scale,” said Centrus CEO Amir Vexler. “We are planning an historic, multi-billion-dollar investment right here in Ohio – supported by a nationwide supply chain to do just that. When it comes to powering our energy future, it’s time to stop relying on foreign, state-owned corporations and start investing in American technology, built by American workers.”
Almost 100% of the world’s enrichment capacity belongs to non-US state-owned enterprises all of which use centrifuge technologies exclusively manufactured overseas. Centrus is the only active enricher that uses American technology and manufactures centrifuges and supporting equipment exclusively in the US. The company will manufacture its centrifuges in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, with the support of a nationwide manufacturing supply chain that currently spans 14 major suppliers in 13 states. The centrifuges and supporting equipment will then be sent to Piketon for final assembly, installation and operation.
The expansion project is expected to support hundreds of jobs at Centrus’ centrifuge manufacturing plant in Tennessee and throughout its manufacturing supply chain – which is entirely domestic – along with thousands of indirect jobs in Ohio, Tennessee, and across the country.
Centrus has already begun hiring in anticipation of the expansion and is partnering with JobsOhio to identify and recruit potential job applicants. The JobsOhio Talent Acquisition Services team is working in partnership with Centrus to support the company’s overall talent strategy. However, there are no state of Ohio or JobsOhio grants, loans, or tax credits planned at this time.
“The investment and job creation that Centrus has announced will provide amazing opportunities in the southern portion of the OhioSE region,” said Matt Abbott, OhioSE President and CEO. “We are pleased to be a part of this monumental project.”
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said: “Centrus’s commitment to expand and upgrade its Piketon facility underscores Ohio’s importance in supporting our nation’s economic and national security,” said. “Uranium enrichment operations in Piketon have played a critical role in US national defence since the earliest days of the Cold War, and Centrus’s facility provides the only technology available today capable of building out domestic enrichment at an industrial scale.”
