Move is part of continuing efforts to reduce dependence on Russia
The US Department of Energy said on 10 December it is offering initial contracts to six companies to produce low-enriched uranium (LEU) fuel for conventional nuclear plants to generate electricity.
The companies that won contracts are: Centrus’s American Centrifuge Operating; General Matter; Global Laser Enrichment; Urenco's Louisiana Energy Services; Laser Isotope Separation Technologies; and Orano Federal Services.
“These contracts generated from this action will help spur the safe and responsible build-out of uranium enrichment capacity in the United States,” said Michael Goff, principal deputy assistant secretary for nuclear energy.
The DOE said developing new domestic production capacity for LEU will ensure an adequate fuel supply is available from trusted sources to maintain the current fleet of US reactors and build a strong base to supply future deployments of advanced nuclear reactors both at home and abroad.
Through the contracts, the DOE will acquire LEU generated by new domestic sources – either at entirely new facilities or from projects that expand existing capacity. All contracts will last for up to 10 years and each awardee will receive a minimum contract of $2m (€1.9m).
The move is part of US efforts to kick-start a domestic uranium fuel supply chain to reduce dependence on Russia, from which US reactors have been getting about 25% of their enriched uranium in recent years.
In May the US announced a ban on import of enriched uranium from Russia as part of a package of sanctions on Moscow over its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The ban allows waivers until 2028.
US Also Aiming To Boost Haleu Production
Four of the six companies were awarded initial contracts in October to produce a more enriched fuel called high assay low enriched uranium, or Haleu, to be used in advanced reactors.
The four were American Centrifuge Operating, General Matter, Louisiana Energy Services and Orano Federal Services
Haleu is uranium enriched between 5% and 20%, which increases the amount of fissile material to make the fuel more efficient relative to lower-enriched forms of uranium.
Many advanced reactors – likely to be deployed from the 2030s onwards – will use Haleu to achieve smaller designs, longer operating cycles, and increased efficiencies over current technologies.
Russia is currently the only country that makes Haleu in commercial volumes. Funds to make the fuel domestically in the US were included in a May 2024 law to ban uranium shipments from Russia by 2028.
