With Lutnick Watching, Centrus Signs MOU To Expand Uranium Enrichment

Regular readers of ZeroHedge are well that we believe Centrus Energy could be the next obvious candidate for the U.S. government to cozy up to and acquire a stake(similar to how the Trump admin recently did with rare earth company MP Materials and of course Intel, both of which we correctly predicted ahead of time, here and here). And now Centrus is obviously doubling down on its push to bring uranium enrichment back to U.S. soil, and get some Trump love – and taxpayer funds – in the process.

The company announced yesterday it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) and POSCO International to explore potential investment in expanding its enrichment plant in Piketon, Ohio.

The signing ceremony drew high-level attention, with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and Korea’s Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jung-kwan both in attendance. The deal underscores a growing U.S.–Korea partnership in civilian nuclear energy — and highlights the demand for secure, non-Russian sources of uranium enrichment.

Lutnick’s mere presence, to us, already shows the company is extremely cozy with the Trump administration. 

Centrus CEO Amir Vexler emphasized moving business back to the U.S., one of the key goals of the Trump administration’s global trade realignment. He didn’t mince words about what the deal represents: “We are proud to be strengthening our relationship with our partners in Korea in support of our work to restore America’s ability to enrich uranium at a large scale. This agreement reflects strong demand for a U.S.-owned uranium enrichment capability and another potential avenue for private investment capital to bring added supply diversity and competition to the marketplace – and meet Korea’s need for affordable, reliable fuel supplies for both new and existing reactors.”

“The agreement is aimed at strengthening US-South Korea cooperation on civilian nuclear energy,” Bloomberg wrote Tuesday morning. 

The new agreement builds on a February 2025 supply contract between Centrus and KHNP to back construction of new enrichment capacity at the company’s American Centrifuge Plant in Ohio. As part of today’s announcement, the two sides agreed to boost the supply volume of low-enriched uranium (LEU). That commitment, however, depends on Centrus securing federal funding to expand production capacity — funding it is currently competing for from the Department of Energy.

The stakes are high. Nearly all uranium enrichment worldwide is controlled by foreign, state-owned enterprises. Centrus argues that federal support, matched with private investment and utility commitments, is necessary to create a viable U.S. alternative.

While the new MOU is non-binding, it sets the stage for private sector capital to flow into Piketon. It also opens the door to future deals, including supply agreements for LEU and high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU), which will be critical for next-generation reactor designs.

“Centrus is competing for funding from the U.S. Department of Energy to expand U.S. enrichment capacity.”

Competing with whom?
How much you need? $5BN? $10BN? $20BN? Done https://t.co/i1t7vf3bdl

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) August 25, 2025

We’ve written extensively about the Trump administration’s interest in taking direct stakes in US strategic companies, first with…

• US To Have ‘Golden Share’ In Nippon Steel Partnership With US Steel: Sen. McCormick

Then with:

• Rare Earth Producer MP Materials Soars 50% After US Government Becomes Largest Shareholder

And finally calling the government’s take in Intel well in advance:

• US Finalizes 10% Equity Stake In Intel For $8.87 Billion in Funding

Needless say, now that industrial statecraft ahead of the looming war with China is all the rage, getting closer (and purchasing a stake) to a company like Centrus Energy makes perfect sense. The future is going to be powered by nuclear — and the administration has already signaled strong optimism toward nuclear and the next wave of small modular reactors. Those projects are going to need a reliable, domestic source of uranium, which could very easily be deemed a “matter of national security.” Centrus fits that bill perfectly.