U.S. DOE Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant (Portsmouth Site)
Large load · 3930 US ROUTE 23 SOUTH, Piketon, OH
The Portsmouth Site in Pike County, Ohio, is a DOE-owned former gaseous diffusion plant undergoing decontamination and decommissioning, where Centrus operates a HALEU centrifuge cascade leased from DOE. FERC records that the facility required approximately 2,000 MW during production and approximately 45 MW after going into cold stand-by in 2001.
Overview
The Portsmouth site is owned by DOE and occupies a 5.4-square-mile site in Pike County, Ohio. In 2011 USEC returned the facilities to DOE for decontamination and decommissioning, and that mission is ongoing. Centrus has completed all HALEU production called for under its demonstration contract and intends to privately operate the existing HALEU cascade on a commercial basis. The Department contracted with Centrus subsidiary American Centrifuge Operating in 2019 to construct a cascade of 16 advanced centrifuges in Piketon, Ohio.
Profile
- Electricity and grid
- DOE Portsmouth's predecessor and OVEC entered into a comprehensive power agreement in 1952 under which OVEC supplied the entire electrical requirements of the Facility; at the time the Facility required approximately 2,000 MW. Since going into cold stand-by mode in 2001, the Facility requires approximately 45 MW, served from the X530 switchyard. OVEC says DOE provides an estimate of its load each month and OVEC solicits bids for the needed power. In its 2020 filing OVEC says DOE has requested small amounts of power, usually less than 50 megawatts, to keep the plant in cold standby. PJM assumed responsibility for the load following schedule of DOE load for the Portsmouth, Ohio facility as of 12/1/18.
- Contractors and ownership
- The Portsmouth Paducah Project Office replaced FBP with SOCCo and MCSA effective October 1, 2025. SOCCo is made up of Amentum Environment and Energy, Inc., Fluor Federal Services, Inc. and Cavendish Nuclear (USA) Incorporated. DOE awarded the Operations and Site Mission Support Services contract to Mission Conversion Services Alliance LLC. Centrus Energy Corp.'s subsidiary American Centrifuge Operating LLC operates at a facility leased from DOE in Piketon, Ohio.
Facility
- Activity
- HALEU uranium enrichment at the American Centrifuge facility leased from DOE
- Industry
- Industrial
- Site type
- Campus
- Operating status
- Operating