The brief

Analyst view

• Sole U.S. HALEU producer; fuel bottleneck for Natrium, Oklo, X-Energy, others.
• July 2026 DOE contract: $900M/$1.07B. Piketon expansion: 12 t/yr by 2029.
• NYSE (LEU). Emerged as Centrus Energy in 2014 from USEC bankruptcy; transitioned from contractor to infrastructure operator.

Technical approach

As reported

Gas centrifuge enrichment

Spin UF6 to separate uranium isotopes

~100,000 rpm rotor. U-238 outward, U-235 inward. Cascades of centrifuges enrich stepwise.

American Centrifuge

Cassette-based modular design

Swappable centrifuge cassettes; faster maintenance and scaling. LEU to HALEU.

HALEU production

Fuel above LEU, below weapons-grade

5-20% U-235 fuels small and fast reactors. Proliferation-resistant.

LEU trading

Fuel for legacy light-water reactors

3-5% U-235. Covers operating costs while HALEU demand ramps.

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