Urenco to Expand New Mexico Enrichment Capacity Nearly 50% by 2036
Urenco announced in June that it plans to expand its New Mexico site, increasing capacity nearly 50 percent by 2036. The New Mexico facility currently fulfills about one-third of U.S. enrichment demand, making it a central piece of the Western fuel supply chain.
The expansion comes as the United States tries to rebuild domestic enrichment and reduce reliance on foreign suppliers. Foreign suppliers provided 93 percent of the uranium delivered to U.S. reactors, according to a ZeroHedge report, leaving the front end of the nuclear fuel chain exposed. Domestic production of HALEU is not yet at commercial scale, and the fuel is largely imported from Russia, according to the Department of Energy.
New Entrants and Licensing
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has accepted for review General Matter's application to build and operate a uranium enrichment facility in Kentucky, according to correspondence described by ZeroHedge. The application is one of the first new commercial enrichment proposals to reach the NRC in years, and its progress will be watched by utilities and reactor developers seeking diversified supply.
Orano has asked for more time on its enrichment project deadlines, illustrating differing senses of urgency among the two newest projects, according to an account described by ZeroHedge. The request suggests that not all proposed capacity will arrive on the same schedule.
Globally, only five plants operate large-scale uranium conversion, and nearly half of global enrichment capacity is controlled by Russia, according to an OilPrice analysis. That concentration is a vulnerability for Western utilities and advanced reactor developers, especially as Congress moves to restrict Russian uranium imports.
Urenco's New Mexico site currently fulfills about one-third of U.S. enrichment demand, and the planned expansion would increase capacity nearly 50 percent by 2036.
The Urenco expansion is one of several supply-side responses. A $1.07 billion contract awarded to a consortium led by Centrus Energy is intended to establish a domestic HALEU supply chain at Piketon, Ohio, with operations expected in the 2030s. Centrus has also begun commercial HALEU production using its 16-centrifuge demonstration cascade.
For HALEU buyers, the key question is timing. Urenco's expansion targets 2036, while advanced reactors may need fuel earlier. The gap between reactor readiness and fuel availability remains the central risk in the Western HALEU market.
This article was assisted by AI analysis. Please refer to the original source for official information.