Combining enrichment and deconversion: The Oklo-Centrus joint venture, if it gets an official go-ahead, would combine uranium enrichment and deconversion activities at Centrus’s American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon “to improve efficiency and costs through co-location and expand domestic advanced nuclear fuel capacity to serve Oklo’s needs and broader U.S. nuclear deployment,” according to the joint press release.
The companies further noted that centralizing both HALEU enrichment and deconversion services at Piketon “could eliminate the need for each fuel fabrication facility to establish its own deconversion line, which would enhance competitiveness for the entire industry. In addition, such a central hub could simplify and reduce the cost of shipping HALEU.”
As part of their exploratory discussions, Oklo and Centrus are examining opportunities for coordinating their regulatory efforts and research and development, including their engagement with federal, state, and local initiatives on deconversion services and nuclear fuel cycle infrastructure, as well as broader regional redevelopment plans. One such plan is the Southern Ohio Diversification Initiative, which is seeking to transform the former Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Pike County into “an ‘all-of-the-above’ energy generation complex co-located with high-volume industrial electricity users and manufacturing.”
Corporate collaborations: Centrus is working to get new centrifuges on line at its Piketon plant, which is being expanded with DOE funding to support HALEU enrichment and deconversion activities and low-enriched uranium production. Centrus and Fluor formed a collaboration in February regarding engineering, procurement, and construction work for the Piketon expansion.
The Oklo-Centrus discussions build on a preexisting corporate relationship between the firms. In 2023, the companies signed a memorandum of understanding to support the eventual deployment of Oklo’s Aurora microreactor near Centrus’s Piketon plant.
Regarding the potential new collaboration, Oklo co-founder and CEO Jacob DeWitte said that the “framework supports deeper discussions with Centrus on potential pathways to expand deconversion capacity, strengthen domestic supply chains, and advance a more efficient fuel-cycle model that operates from the same location.”
Centrus president and CEO Amir Vexler added that his company “is laying the groundwork to rebuild the U.S. nuclear fuel-cycle capacity, including the services needed to support advanced reactor fuels. We look forward to exploring options to co-locate and scale deconversion services to improve efficiency and support growing demand.”
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