US Grants Surprise Exemption to Centrus Energy for Russian Nuclear Fuel
In a surprising turn of events, the US granted a temporary exemption to a domestic company, Centrus Energy Corporation, allowing it to continue importing Russian nuclear fuel. This move comes despite the ongoing ban on Russian uranium imports and the country's significant role in supplying the US nuclear reactors.
In 2024, Russia accounted for 20% of the enriched uranium used in American commercial nuclear reactors. The US ban on Russian uranium imports, enacted in May 2024, did not immediately stop shipments. Meanwhile, the US Department of Energy received billions of dollars to restart domestic enriched uranium production. Centrus Energy, a US company specializing in uranium enrichment, applied for and was granted a waiver by the US Customs and Border Protection to continue importing Russian high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) for a demonstration project on advanced nuclear fuels. This exemption was limited in time and quantity, intended to safeguard the development of advanced reactor concepts in the US without disrupting the domestic effort to restore uranium production.
Despite the political controversy surrounding the exemption, it highlights the strategic importance of the energy sector. The US continues to rely on Russian nuclear fuel, even as it works to reduce dependence and support domestic production. Meanwhile, four EU countries (France, Belgium, Spain, and the Netherlands) paid Russia more for LNG between 2022 and 2025 than they provided in aid to Ukraine, underscoring the complex geopolitical dynamics at play in the global energy market.
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