Planned expansion in New Mexico will increase domestic capacity by about 15%
Urenco USA has begun production of enriched uranium in its newest gas centrifuge cascade, marking the next phase of expansion at its enrichment facility in New Mexico.
The new cascade is the first of several planned to come online at the National Enrichment Facility by early 2027.
Once completed, this expansion of the facility will provide an approximately 15% increase in domestic enrichment capacity.
Urenco USA said its new supply will strengthen the US nuclear fuel supply chain and will support “a transition away from reliance on Russian supply”.
Urenco USA is the US’s only commercial producer of enriched uranium and has been enriching uranium in the US since 2010. The company operates the National Enrichment Facility, which it says is an essential part of the US nuclear fuel supply chain.
The facility represents a commercial investment to date of more than $5bn (€4.4bn) in US manufacturing.
Urenco USA currently has the capacity to meet approximately one-third of the enrichment needs of US commercial nuclear power plants.
The company is evaluating potential additional expansion subject to market demand and underpinned by contracts.
“As the only commercial scale uranium enrichment facility in North America, Urenco USA plays an essential role in the nuclear fuel supply chain, which ends with the generation of reliable, secure, and sustainable energy for US consumers,” the company said.
Urenco USA is owned by Urenco, which is in turn owned by the governments of the UK, Netherlands, and two German utilities E.ON and RWE.
