Urenco USA, operator of the only U.S. commercial-scale uranium enrichment facility, will expand low-enriched uranium (LEU) capacity at its National Enrichment Facility (NEF) in Eunice, New Mexico, by nearly 50% through a privately funded, multibillion-dollar investment that includes construction of a new enrichment plant. The project will add 2.1 million separative work units (SWU) of new enrichment capacity.

The expansion, announced June 2, will install up to 24 gas centrifuge cascades at the licensed New Mexico site. While construction is slated to begin at the new plant in 2029, the first cascades are scheduled to begin production in 2032, and additional cascades are slated for installation through 2036. The NEF site is already licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for up to 10 million SWU of capacity—well above the projected buildout, Urenco told POWER.

Read more in Power Magazine here.

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