Centrus Energy's planned expansion at Piketon, Ohio, is not a single-product project. The company plans additional centrifuge cascades to expand HALEU production capacity, produce LEU feed material for HALEU cascades, produce additional LEU for the commercial market, and service national security needs.
DOE task order anchors the build
In June 2026, the U.S. Department of Energy selected Centrus for a US$900 million task order to expand its Piketon uranium enrichment facility to include commercial-scale HALEU production. Options up to US$170 million for HALEU production and delivery bring the total potential task order value to US$1.07 billion.
The expansion builds on an existing demonstration effort. Under a DOE contract initiated in 2019, Centrus built a cascade of AC-100M advanced centrifuges to demonstrate HALEU production. The Piketon plant became operational in 2023 and continues to produce HALEU under DOE contract.
Centrus plans additional centrifuge cascades at Piketon to expand HALEU production capacity, produce LEU feed material for HALEU cascades, produce additional LEU for the commercial market, and service national security needs.
Jobs and timing
The Piketon expansion is expected to create 1,000 construction jobs and 300 new operating jobs in Ohio while retaining 150 existing jobs at the plant. New centrifuges produced in Tennessee will be grouped into cascades at Piketon, with the first new uranium enrichment capacity expected to come online in 2029.
Centrus has not disclosed an installation date for the first new machine or annual enrichment output for the initial 2029 capacity. The company's existing Ohio cascade includes components manufactured in 2019 and has more than four million machine-hours of successful operation. It has been reliably producing HALEU since late 2023, according to Centrus.
The project also draws on state support. Centrus has utilized funding from Tennessee's US$70 million Nuclear Energy Fund, administered through the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, for its Oak Ridge manufacturing work.
This article was assisted by AI analysis. Please refer to the original source for official information.