Another Megatons to Megawatts milestone
25 August 2011
The Megatons to Megawatts program has now downblended 425 tonnes of high-enriched uranium (HEU), equivalent to 17,000 nuclear warheads, US uranium enrichment company USEC has announced. The 20-year program to downblend 500 tonnes of surplus weapons-grade Russian HEU into nuclear fuel for civil nuclear reactors will eliminate the equivalent of 20,0000 warheads by the time it comes to an end in 2013. The scheme is implemented by USEC and Russia's Techsnabexport (Tenex). According to USEC, Russian enriched uranium currently accounts for about half of its supply source. A new contract signed in March 2011 will see Tenex continue to supply low-enriched uranium (LEU) from Russian commercial enrichment activities to USEC after the Megatons to Megawatts program finishes.