On September 9, 2026, Centrus Energy and microreactor developer Radiant announced a definitive multi-year contract: Centrus will supply high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) for Radiant’s Kaleidos microreactors. Deliveries begin before the end of the decade, but neither company disclosed volumes, price or prepayment amounts.
The deal at a glance
| Item | Reported | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Contract | Definitive multi-year HALEU supply | World Nuclear News, Sep 9, 2026 |
| Deliveries | Before end of decade | World Nuclear News |
| Volumes, price, prepayments | Not disclosed | World Nuclear News |
| Kaleidos output | About 3 MWt, about 1 MWe | World Nuclear News |
Why the fuel is the story
HALEU is uranium enriched to between 5% and 20% uranium-235, and many advanced reactor designs need it. World Nuclear News reports that no commercial HALEU source currently exists in the US and that the Department of Energy has been supporting a domestic supply chain. Radiant will make prepayments to Centrus to support Centrus’s domestic commercial enrichment capacity program.
Centrus has been working on this gap for years. In 2019 the DOE awarded it a contract to build a demonstration centrifuge cascade at the American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon, Ohio. In 2022 it was selected for a three-phase follow-on contract to bring the cascade into production and deliver HALEU to the DOE. Radiant’s chief nuclear officer, Rita Baranwal, said: “You can’t deploy nuclear reactors without fuel.” She said Radiant is building its fuel supply in parallel with the reactor.
Kaleidos is a high-temperature, gas-cooled microreactor that uses helium coolant, prismatic graphite blocks and TRISO fuel. Radiant says it fits in a single shipping container. TRISO fuel particles need enriched uranium as feedstock, which is where this deal fits. Radiant separately signed a TRISO fabrication agreement with Standard Nuclear, so the two deals cover different steps.
Centrus announced a Piketon expansion last year to raise both low-enriched uranium and HALEU production. World Nuclear News reports it is expected to create 1,000 construction jobs and 300 operating jobs, and keep the 150 jobs that existed when it began. Those figures belong to the expansion as a whole. Radiant’s contract is one customer contributing to it, and no source says it funds those jobs alone.
Why It Matters to You
- Nobody can buy power from Kaleidos yet. Radiant has not deployed a commercial reactor.
- The nearest benefit is to Radiant and to communities around Piketon, Ohio, where Centrus is expanding enrichment (the job figures cover the whole expansion, not this contract).
- Customers who might one day use a container-sized reactor would depend on this kind of fuel supply existing, with deliveries starting before the end of the decade.
What we can’t say
The sources do not state how many reactors the fuel would supply, and no volumes, prices or prepayment amounts were disclosed, so the size of the deal is unknown. Deliveries start “before the end of the decade,” which leaves a wide window and no firm date. Because Radiant has not yet deployed a commercial reactor, demand for this fuel depends on the reactor reaching customers.
Quick answers
What is HALEU? High-assay low-enriched uranium is enriched to between 5% and 20% uranium-235. Today’s large reactors mostly use fuel enriched below 5%.
Does this deal fuel Kaleidos completely? It covers the enriched uranium. TRISO fuel fabrication is a separate step, which Radiant has addressed through a Standard Nuclear agreement.
When will Radiant receive fuel? Centrus says deliveries begin before the end of the decade. No exact schedule was given.
Who else is making HALEU in the US? World Nuclear News says no commercial source exists yet. Centrus is producing under its DOE contract, which is a demonstration and production program, not a commercial market.
Sources
- World Nuclear News: Centrus to supply Radiant with microreactor fuel (Sep 9, 2026)
- BIC Magazine: Standard Nuclear executes fuel supply agreement with Radiant for TRISO nuclear fuel (Aug 20, 2026)