Looming USEC bankruptcy will not affect contracts with Tekhsnabexport - Rosatom
MOSCOW. Dec 17 (Interfax) - The apparently pending bankruptcy of United States Enrichment Corporation (USEC), which enriches uranium, will not have an impact on contracts with Russian exporter of nuclear materials OJSC Tekhsnabexports, which is part of state nuclear power corporation Rosatom, the Rosatom press service told Interfax.
"This is an expected technical procedure in relation to USEC, Inc., the parent company of Tekhsnabexport's partner. And we expect that this procedure will lead to an improvement in the condition of our partners. Stockholder makeup will change, but this will have no impact on the contracts," Rosatom said.
USEC is one of the main suppliers of enriched uranium along with Tekhsnabexport, the French company Areva, and the European consortium Urenco. It is also the agent for the Russian-U.S. HEU/LEU (highly enriched/low-enriched uranium) contract, under which Russia ships highly enriched uranium (HEU) removed from dismantled nuclear warheads in diluted form suitable for nuclear power plant fuel to the United States.
In March of 2011, Russia and the United States agreed on deliveries of low-enriched uranium after the expiration of the HEU/LEU: Tekhsnabexport and USEC signed a long-term, $2.8 billion contract for the provision of services in the enrichment of uranium for ten years starting this year.