Orano, a state-owned uranium producer, has announced Oak Ridge, Tennessee, as the preferred site for its new multibillion-dollar uranium enrichment facility in the US. The facility is expected to bolster the country’s domestic nuclear fuel supply, a critical move following recent legislation banning the import of Russian low-enriched uranium.
Tennessee’s Nuclear Energy Fund, with $60 million available, will support the project, though the total cost of the facility has not been disclosed.
The plant, expected to create 300 jobs, is currently in the planning stages, with Orano seeking approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, its board, and the federal government. The company had previously considered developing US nuclear facilities but abandoned those plans after the Fukushima disaster in 2011.
The Tennessee project comes in the wake of the Biden administration’s ban on importing Russian uranium, part of a broader strategy to reduce reliance on Russia, which currently supplies 30% of the West’s enriched uranium. The ban has unlocked $2.7 billion in US funding for domestic uranium projects. While the US has taken steps to reduce dependence on Russian uranium, the Department of Energy has issued waivers allowing continued imports in the short term.