TerraPower and Centrus Energy execute MOU to
accelerate joint efforts to create domestic, commercial-scale HALEU
production
BELLEVUE, Wash., and BETHESDA, Md., July 17,
2023 /PRNewswire/ -- TerraPower and Centrus Energy
Corp. (NYSE American: LEU) announced today a new memorandum of
understanding (MOU) to significantly expand their collaboration
aimed at establishing commercial-scale, domestic production
capabilities for high-assay, low-enriched uranium (HALEU) to supply
TerraPower's first-of-a-kind NatriumTM reactor[1] and
energy storage system.
Under this MOU, Centrus and TerraPower will collaborate to
ensure the Natrium demonstration reactor has access to HALEU at the
milestones necessary to meet the project's 2030 operation date. The
two companies will establish a cost-competitive and timely source
of enrichment capacity in the United
States at Centrus' Nuclear Regulatory Commission
(NRC)-licensed HALEU production facility.
TerraPower and Centrus have been working together since 2021,
when they entered into a contract for services to help expedite the
commercialization of domestic enrichment technology at Centrus'
Piketon, Ohio, facility.
"TerraPower is committed to a successful and timely delivery of
the Natrium demonstration reactor," said Chris Levesque, TerraPower president and CEO.
"This expanded collaboration with Centrus represents TerraPower's
commitment to reinvigorating the domestic supply chain as we bring
advanced reactors to market within the decade. Generation IV
reactors are the solution we need for the energy grid of the future
and this MOU will ensure we can fuel these reactors for decades to
come."
"Centrus is ready to pioneer U.S. HALEU production and to meet
the needs of TerraPower in bringing their advanced reactor to
market," said Daniel B. Poneman,
Centrus President and CEO. "American HALEU production is
vital for deploying U.S.-designed advanced nuclear reactors.
Establishing the domestic HALEU supply chain is critical for our
energy independence."
The Natrium technology is a 345-megawatt sodium-cooled fast
reactor coupled with a molten salt-based integrated energy storage
system that can boost power output to 500-megawatts for more than
five and a half hours to serve peak demand; making it the ideal
technology to pair with energy grids that have high penetrations of
renewable resources and the only advanced reactor that can provide
stability to the grid with baseload output while seamlessly
boosting energy production to meet variable power needs.
In February 2023, Centrus
completed the operational readiness review for its HALEU production
facility and in June 2023 received
permission from the NRC to begin operation. As part of this MOU,
Centrus will work toward scaling up production capacity with
additional centrifuge cascades to meet TerraPower's fuel
requirements.
About TerraPower
TerraPower is a leading nuclear
innovation company that strives to improve the world through
nuclear energy and science. Since it was founded by
Bill Gates and a group of
like-minded visionaries, TerraPower has emerged as an incubator and
developer of ideas and technologies that offer energy independence,
environmental sustainability, medical advancement and other
cutting-edge opportunities. It accepts and tackles some of the
world's most difficult challenges. Behind each of its
innovations and programs, TerraPower actively works to bring
together the strengths and experiences of the world's public and
private sectors to use advanced nuclear to answer pressing global
needs. Learn more at https://terrapower.com/.
About Centrus Energy
Centrus is a trusted supplier of
nuclear fuel and services for the nuclear power industry. Centrus
provides value to its utility customers through the reliability and
diversity of its supply sources – helping them meet the growing
need for clean, affordable, carbon-free electricity. Since 1998,
the Company has provided its utility customers with more than 1,750
reactor years of fuel, which is equivalent to 7 billion tons of
coal.
With world-class technical capabilities, Centrus offers turnkey
engineering and advanced manufacturing solutions to its customers.
The Company is also advancing the next generation of centrifuge
technologies so that America can restore its domestic uranium
enrichment capability in the future. Find out more at
www.centrusenergy.com.
Forward Looking Statements:
This news release contains
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In this context,
forward-looking statements mean statements related to future
events, which may impact our expected future business and financial
performance, and often contain words such as "expects",
"anticipates", "intends", "plans", "believes", "will", "should",
"could", "would" or "may" and other words of similar meaning. These
forward-looking statements are based on information available to us
as of the date of this news release and represent management's
current views and assumptions. Forward-looking statements are not
guarantees of future performance, events or results and involve
known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may
be beyond our control. For Centrus Energy Corp., particular
risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual future results
to differ materially from those expressed in our forward-looking
statements include but are not limited to the following which are,
and will be, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent
variants, and any worsening of the global business and economic
environment as a result; risks related to whether or when
government funding or demand for high-assay low-enriched uranium
("HALEU") for government or commercial uses will materialize; risks
related to (i) our ability to perform and absorb costs under our
agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy ("DOE") to deploy and
operate a cascade of centrifuges to demonstrate production of HALEU
for advanced reactors (the "HALEU Operations Contract"), (ii) our
ability to obtain contracts and funding to be able to continue
operations and (iii) our ability to obtain and/or perform under
other agreements; risks related to uncertainty regarding our
ability to commercially deploy a competitive enrichment technology;
risks related to the fact that we face significant competition from
major producers who may be less cost sensitive or are wholly or
partially government owned; risks related to the impact of
government regulation and policies including by the DOE and the
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission; and other risks and
uncertainties discussed in this and our other filings with the
SEC.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these
forward-looking statements, which apply only as of the date of this
news release. These factors may not constitute all factors that
could cause actual results to differ from those discussed in any
forward-looking statement. Accordingly, forward-looking statements
should not be relied upon as a predictor of actual results. Readers
are urged to carefully review and consider the various disclosures
made in this news release and in our other filings with the SEC,
including our Annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2022, and our other
filings with the SEC that attempt to advise interested parties of
the risks and factors that may affect our business. We do not
undertake to update our forward-looking statements to reflect
events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this news
release, except as required by law.
TerraPower Contact:
press@terrapower.com
Centrus Contacts:
Media -- Lindsey Geisler (301) 564-3392 or
GeislerLR@centrusenergy.com
Investors -- Dan Leistikow (301)
564-3399 or LeistikowD@centrusenergy.com
1 A TerraPower and GE Hitachi technology
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SOURCE Centrus Energy Corp.