New nuclear energy investments announced for Oak Ridge

Centrus Energy Corp.is investing $60 million to resume using and expanding centrifuge technology at Oak Ridge with the goal of making the U.S. more energy-independent. The company recently secured the $2 billion in contracts needed to make them eligible for a portion of the $3.4 billion from the U.S. Department of Energy for building up U.S.-based energy supplies. Centrus presently employs 140 people at their Oak Ridge facility and hopes to expand those numbers. The company also has a facility in Ohio. Meanwhile, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approved construction permits for Kairos Power’s Hermes 2 Demonstration Plant, which will be built adjacent to the company’s first reactor at the Heritage Center Industrial Park in Oak Ridge. Hermes 2 is the first electricity-producing Gen IV plant to be approved for construction in the United States according to a release from the company. The facility will include two test reactors, that will use molten salt to cool the reactor cores, and a shared power generation system.