Jan. 6 (UPI) — The Department of Energy has announced it would award $2.7 billion in funding to three companies to increase domestic uranium enrichment over the next decade.
The announcement by the Department of Energy comes as President Donald Trump has sought to reinvigorate the United States’ nuclear energy industry as it moves away from foreign sources of energy.
However, the funding authority for the awards originated under President Joe Biden‘s Investing in America agenda and related legislation that aimed to increase uranium enrichment capacity in the United States to bolster U.S. energy security and resilience, while reducing dependence on Russian energy.
With the announcement, American Centrifuge Operating, General Matter and Orano Federal Services will each receive an award of $900 million.
ACO and GM will be tasked with creating domestic high-assay, low-enriched uranium enrichment capacity, while OFS will expand U.S. domestic low-enriched uranium enrichment capacity.
The three companies were chosen from six that were permitted last year to bid on future work.
“President Trump is catalyzing a resurgence in the nation’s nuclear energy sector to strengthen American security and prosperity,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a statement.
“Today’s awards show that this administration is committed to restoring a secure domestic nuclear fuel supply chain capable of producing nuclear fuels needed to power the reactors of today and the advanced reactors of tomorrow.”
Orano said the funding marks a “key milestone” in accelerating the development of its $5 billion facility in Oak Ridge, Tenn.
According to the company, the United States imports two-thirds of the LEU needed to power the U.S. nuclear fleet from foreign sources, including Russia, and its new IKE facility will help reduce the United States’ dependence on Moscow, especially after the ban on Russian imports begins in 2028.
“The decision by the U.S. Department of Energy is a great source of pride as it identifies Orano as a proven nuclear fuel supplier,” Orano CEO Nicolas Maes said in a statement.
General Matter said under its contract with the Department of Energy, it will build domestic enrichment capacity that will help fuel “the next generation of American nuclear power” and enable “American leadership in AI, manufacturing and other critical industries.”
“Rebuilding U.S. domestic enrichment capacity will reduce our reliance on foreign providers, strengthen our nuclear industrial base and lower energy costs for utilities and consumers,” it said in a social media post.
“American reactors need American uranium. In partnership with the Department of Energy, we will deliver it.”