The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has assumed regulatory oversight of USEC’s American Centrifuge Lead Cascade Facility in Piketon, Ohio, from the Department of Energy and has authorised the company to process uranium at the plant.
The Lead Cascade, which consists of up to 240 centrifuges, is separate from the American Centrifuge Plant, a full-scale commercial enrichment plant USEC proposes to construct at the same location. The NRC is currently reviewing USEC’s application for the full-scale plant, and expects to issue its Safety Evaluation Report in the coming weeks.
The NRC issued USEC a five-year licence for the Lead Cascade centrifuge demonstration facility in February 2004. NRC inspectors have conducted an operational readiness review of the Lead Cascade over the past several months, concluding that USEC has met all conditions.
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