The board of directors of Orano has approved an investment of some EUR1.7 billion (USD1.8 billion) to raise the production capacity of the Georges Besse II uranium enrichment plant at the Tricastin site in southern France by more than 30%.

US nuclear fuel and services company Centrus Energy Corp has begun enrichment operations at the American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon, Ohio. The company said it expects to begin withdrawing high-assay low-enriched uranium product later this month.

The first batch of uranium mined at the Eastern Mining and Enrichment Plant in Ukraine has been sent to Canada where it will be converted into natural uranium hexafluoride as part of the company's agreement with Cameco.

Orano has revealed plans to extend enrichment capacity at its Georges Besse II uranium enrichment plant, and has begun the regulatory process to produce HALEU there. Separately, the company has confirmed it is "reorganising" work at its Niger operations to mitigate logistical impacts following the recent coup.

US nuclear fuel and services company Centrus Energy Corp announced that it expects to begin first-of-a-kind production of high-assay low-enriched uranium at the American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon, Ohio, in October - about two months ahead of schedule.

The UK government has announced it will provide a GBP192 million (USD243 million) loan guarantee to enable UK-headquartered Urenco to supply Energoatom, Ukraine's national nuclear company, with uranium enrichment services. The UK government also agreed a Memorandum of Understanding committing support to Ukraine's energy sector and green energy future.

The installation of equipment has begun at TVEL's JSC Electrochemical Plant in Zelenogorsk in Russia's Krasnoyarsk Region for W2-ECP, the country's second plant for the processing of depleted uranium hexafluoride. The plant is part of a long-term project to manage and make use of depleted uranium stocks in Russia.

Testing has been completed of the second full-scale laser system module developed by Australia's Silex Systems Ltd for deployment in Global Laser Enrichment's commercial pilot demonstration facility in the USA. The module is expected to be installed and operational by the end of this year.

Indústrias Nucleares do Brasil has signed a contract with Amazônia Azul Technologias de Defesa SA (Amazul) to provide engineering services for the second phase of the uranium enrichment plant at INB's nuclear fuel factory in Resende.

Southern Ohio Cleanup Company LLC - a joint venture led by Amentum with Fluor and Cavendish Nuclear USA - has been awarded a contract worth some USD5.87 billion by the US Department of Energy to decontaminate and decommission the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Piketon, Ohio.

Uranium enrichment services provider Urenco has announced plans to increase capacity at its plant in Eunice, New Mexico - the only operating commercial uranium enrichment facility in North America - by 15%. New commitments from US customers for non-Russian fuel underpin this investment, the company noted.

The US nuclear fuel and services company Centrus has completed its operational readiness reviews and received regulatory approval to possess uranium at its Piketon, Ohio site and introduce uranium into the cascade of centrifuges it has constructed there. The company said it remains on track to begin production of high-assay low-enriched uranium at the plant before the end of the year.